If ever there was a family ripe for parodying in the golden age of Broadway, it was the grand family of Broadway itself, the Barrymores. I'm surprised that when this opened in 1927, playwright George F. Kaufman didn't convince either John or Ethel Barrymore to step into the roles spoofing themselves. This is a filmed version of the 1975 revival, a big hit for a legendary cast led by Eva Le Gallienne, Rosemary Harris and Ellis Rabb as the matriarch of a grand theater family and her two children. Somehow brother Lionel managed to get left behind in the parody, but perhaps how they avoided legal action. There's also an uncle, his shrewish wife, and Harris's daughter who has announced that she wants to live a normal life which of course turns this family on its axis, considering that they obviously feel that the world revolves around them.
Obviously the Royal Family of Broadway is a royal pain for anyone who knows them, but they have been kowtowed to for so long that no amount of therapy could cure them if that attention stopped. This is a lavish production that is probably going to be a big shock for "Aunt Mae" fans of the early "Spider Man" movies. It's the year before Rosemary Harris won acclaim as the matriarch in the TV miniseries "Holocaust", and more than 30 years later, she would return to this play to portray matriarch Fanny.
A beautiful set shows the austentatiousness of this lifestyle, and how these actors continue to act even when they are not on stage. To see legendary stage performers spoofing their own profession is an absolute delight, and having seen Harris as recently as 2018 on Broadway (as Mrs. Higgins in a revival of "My Fair Lady") and other roles playing a very eccentric, narcissistic character unlike her image is a thrill. Mary Layne, Mary Louise Wilson and Rosetta LeNoire deserve shout-outs as the youngest member of the family, demanding in-law and maid, with LeNoire not adding unnecessary sass to her part but getting laughs none the less.
Obviously the Royal Family of Broadway is a royal pain for anyone who knows them, but they have been kowtowed to for so long that no amount of therapy could cure them if that attention stopped. This is a lavish production that is probably going to be a big shock for "Aunt Mae" fans of the early "Spider Man" movies. It's the year before Rosemary Harris won acclaim as the matriarch in the TV miniseries "Holocaust", and more than 30 years later, she would return to this play to portray matriarch Fanny.
A beautiful set shows the austentatiousness of this lifestyle, and how these actors continue to act even when they are not on stage. To see legendary stage performers spoofing their own profession is an absolute delight, and having seen Harris as recently as 2018 on Broadway (as Mrs. Higgins in a revival of "My Fair Lady") and other roles playing a very eccentric, narcissistic character unlike her image is a thrill. Mary Layne, Mary Louise Wilson and Rosetta LeNoire deserve shout-outs as the youngest member of the family, demanding in-law and maid, with LeNoire not adding unnecessary sass to her part but getting laughs none the less.