Time Stands Still (play)
Encyclopedia
Time Stands Still is a play written by the Pulitzer Prize
winner Donald Margulies
and directed by Tony Award
winner Daniel Sullivan
about changing relationships and developing social issues. It was nominated for two Tony Awards for Best Play and Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play for Laura Linney
.
and revolves around Sarah, a photo journalist who has returned from covering the Iraq war after being injured in a roadside bomb, and her reporter ex-boyfriend James who is swamped by guilt after leaving Sarah alone in Iraq
. They receive a visit from their friend Richard, a photo editor, who introduces them to his new girlfriend Mandy, who is much younger than he. The play focuses on their relationships and Sarah and James' prospects at a more conventional life.
and was the fourth collaboration for writer Donald Margulies
and director Daniel Sullivan
. It starred Anna Gunn
as Sarah and David Harbour
as James. Robin Thomas
appeared as Richard, with Alicia Silverstone
as Mandy. Margulies stated that the meaning of the play was "to capture a sense of the way we live now, to dramatize the things that thinking, feeling, moral people are thinking about and struggle with." The Los Angeles Times called it a "compelling if at times elusive drama" and praised Gunn's performance.
In January 2010, it ran on Broadway
at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre in a Manhattan Theatre Club
production, again directed by Daniel Sullivan. Alicia Silverstone reprised her role as Mandy, with Laura Linney
starring as Sarah, Brian d'Arcy James
as James and Eric Bogosian
as Richard. The New York Times said "the heart of Time Stands Still lies in the gently evolving relationship between Sarah and James, which develops troubling new ripples in each scene" and said Silverstone "brings warmth, actorly intelligence and delicate humour." The New York Daily News said Margulies "writes with intelligence and humour and creates dialogue that always hits the ear as real."
Time Stands Still opened again on Broadway at the Cort Theatre
beginning September 23, 2010, with the official opening on October 7. Three of the four cast members returned. Alicia Silverstone has prior scheduling commitments and Christina Ricci
plays the role of Mandy. This production closed on January 30, 2011.
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
winner Donald Margulies
Donald Margulies
Donald Margulies is an American playwright and a professor of English and Theater Studies at Yale University...
and directed by Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
winner Daniel Sullivan
Daniel Sullivan
Daniel "Pegleg" Sullivan was a Chicagoan who is often credited with being the first to sound the alarm when a fire broke out in Catherine O'Leary's barn on October 8, 1871, the beginning of the Great Chicago Fire...
about changing relationships and developing social issues. It was nominated for two Tony Awards for Best Play and Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play for Laura Linney
Laura Linney
Laura Leggett Linney is an American actress of film, television, and theatre. Linney has won three Emmy Awards, two Golden Globes, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. She has been nominated for three times for an Academy Award and once for a BAFTA Award...
.
Synopsis
Time Stands Still is set in BrooklynBrooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
and revolves around Sarah, a photo journalist who has returned from covering the Iraq war after being injured in a roadside bomb, and her reporter ex-boyfriend James who is swamped by guilt after leaving Sarah alone in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
. They receive a visit from their friend Richard, a photo editor, who introduces them to his new girlfriend Mandy, who is much younger than he. The play focuses on their relationships and Sarah and James' prospects at a more conventional life.
Productions
Time Stands Still premiered in February 2009 at the Geffen Playhouse in Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
and was the fourth collaboration for writer Donald Margulies
Donald Margulies
Donald Margulies is an American playwright and a professor of English and Theater Studies at Yale University...
and director Daniel Sullivan
Daniel Sullivan
Daniel "Pegleg" Sullivan was a Chicagoan who is often credited with being the first to sound the alarm when a fire broke out in Catherine O'Leary's barn on October 8, 1871, the beginning of the Great Chicago Fire...
. It starred Anna Gunn
Anna Gunn
Anna Gunn is an American actress, best known for her roles as Assistant District Attorney Jean Ward on The Practice, Martha Bullock on Deadwood, and, currently, Skyler White on Breaking Bad. She appeared on Seinfeld in the episode "The Glasses" and on the first season of Murder One...
as Sarah and David Harbour
David Harbour
David Harbour is an American actor who has performed in film, television and in the theater. He is known for his role as villain Gregg Beam in Quantum of Solace, as Shep Campbell in Revolutionary Road, and as Russell Crowe's source in State of Play...
as James. Robin Thomas
Robin Thomas
Robin Thomas is an American film and television actor.He was born Robin Thomas Grossman in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. His best-known television roles are as Mark Singleton in the soap opera Another World , and as Geoffrey Wells on the 1980s series Who's the Boss?...
appeared as Richard, with Alicia Silverstone
Alicia Silverstone
Alicia Silverstone is an American actress, author, and former fashion model. She first came to widespread attention in music videos for Aerosmith, and is perhaps best known for her roles in Hollywood films such as Clueless and her portrayal of Batgirl in Batman & Robin .-Early life:Silverstone...
as Mandy. Margulies stated that the meaning of the play was "to capture a sense of the way we live now, to dramatize the things that thinking, feeling, moral people are thinking about and struggle with." The Los Angeles Times called it a "compelling if at times elusive drama" and praised Gunn's performance.
In January 2010, it ran on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre in a Manhattan Theatre Club
Manhattan Theatre Club
Manhattan Theatre Club is a theater company located in New York City. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Lynne Meadow and Executive Producer Barry Grove, Manhattan Theatre Club has grown since its founding in 1970 from an Off-Off Broadway showcase into one of the country’s most acclaimed...
production, again directed by Daniel Sullivan. Alicia Silverstone reprised her role as Mandy, with Laura Linney
Laura Linney
Laura Leggett Linney is an American actress of film, television, and theatre. Linney has won three Emmy Awards, two Golden Globes, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. She has been nominated for three times for an Academy Award and once for a BAFTA Award...
starring as Sarah, Brian d'Arcy James
Brian d'Arcy James
Brian d'Arcy James is an American actor and musician.-Personal life:James was born in Saginaw, Michigan, the son of Mary , a seller of children's books, and a lawyer father, Thomas F. James. Brian's maternal grandfather was Harry F. Kelly, former Governor of the state of Michigan...
as James and Eric Bogosian
Eric Bogosian
Eric Bogosian is an American actor, playwright, monologist, and novelist of Armenian descent.-Personal life:Bogosian, an Armenian-American, was born in Woburn, Massachusetts, the son of Edwina, a hairdresser and instructor, and Henry Bogosian, an accountant. After graduating from Oberlin College,...
as Richard. The New York Times said "the heart of Time Stands Still lies in the gently evolving relationship between Sarah and James, which develops troubling new ripples in each scene" and said Silverstone "brings warmth, actorly intelligence and delicate humour." The New York Daily News said Margulies "writes with intelligence and humour and creates dialogue that always hits the ear as real."
Time Stands Still opened again on Broadway at the Cort Theatre
Cort Theatre
The Cort Theatre is a legitimate Broadway theatre located at 138 West 48th Street in the Theatre District of midtown Manhattan in New York City...
beginning September 23, 2010, with the official opening on October 7. Three of the four cast members returned. Alicia Silverstone has prior scheduling commitments and Christina Ricci
Christina Ricci
Christina Ricci is an American actress. Ricci received initial recognition and praise as a child star for her performance as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values , and her role as Kat Harvey in Casper...
plays the role of Mandy. This production closed on January 30, 2011.