Broadway - How Excited Are You?: “Other Desert Cities”

by Chris Peterson

Jon Robin Baitz’s Other Desert Cities will receive its first Broadway revival this fall, and the cast is certainly getting plenty of attention.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Ed Harris, Allison Janney, Lily Rabe, and Joe Keery will lead the production, directed by John Benjamin Hickey. Louis-Dreyfus and Keery will both make their Broadway debuts, while Harris, Janney and Rabe bring a long list of impressive stage credits with them.

On paper, this is one of the strongest ensembles announced for the upcoming season.

The play centers on a politically connected family gathering in Palm Springs for Christmas. Their daughter arrives with a memoir that threatens to reveal long-held family secrets, leading to a fight over loyalty, memory, politics, and who has the right to tell the family’s story.

The original Broadway production opened in 2011 and earned five Tony Award nominations, including Best Play. It has remained a popular choice for regional theatres ever since, and this revival clearly has the casting power to become a major event.

I have to admit, I’ve never been particularly high on the play itself. I understand why actors are drawn to it, and I can absolutely see the appeal of watching this cast work through the material. But Other Desert Cities has never been a title that immediately excites me.

So despite the starry cast, I would describe my current excitement level as lukewarm. Maybe the performances will completely change my mind. Allison Janney and Julia Louis-Dreyfus sharing a Broadway stage is certainly a strong argument in the production’s favor.

The limited run begins previews September 29 at the Hudson Theatre and officially opens October 18.

Where does this one land for you? Does the cast make it a must-see, or are you also feeling a little lukewarm?