Other Desert Cities

Other Desert Cities is a play written by Jon Robin Baitz. The show was first premiered in 2010 at “Mitzi E. New House Theatre” located in New York. Original play is directed by Joe Mantello – director of the hit musical “Wicked”. Other Desert Cities’ sets are created by John Lee Beatty and the costumes are designed by David Zinn. The excellent show of lightning is by Kenneth Posner with sound production by Jill B C DuBoff.
 


Other Desert Cities has been presented by “The Lincoln Theatre” under the supervision and production of Andre Bishop and Bernard Gersten. The original cast includes the famous stage actress Stockard Channing, Linda Lavin, Thomas Sadoski, Elizabeth Marvel and Stacy Keach. Stockard Channing is a famous stage actress from America who is best known for her role in NBC television series “The West Wing” as “First Lady Abbey Bartlet” and for her role as “Betty Rizzo” in “Greaser”.
 


Jon Robin Baitz is a famous American screenwriter, playwright and producer of today. He has appeared in some of the films as an actor too. His initial success came when he led a production for Broadway with Nathan Lane named “The Film Society”. The production won him a Drama Desk Award nomination for “Outstanding New Play”. Next out was his production “The End of the Day” which featured Roger Rees. Later production was “The Substance of Fire” which starred Sarah Jessica Parker and Ron Rifkin. His latest production is “Other Desert Cities” which is recently moving to Broadway after its successful staging at New York and London.
 


Other Desert Cities is the story of girl who returns to her home in the desert in December after a six years absence. She is a promising writer and plans on writing memoirs with a chapter from her own life that would include her family history. This is when past misunderstandings and unresolved conflicts start to open up again, initially bringing a storm within the family and gradually settling down. Although the story is pretty much the same that we have too often heard before, yet Baitz manages to create a masterpiece out of it.
 


Other Desert Cities begins when Lyman and Polly‘s children return to their home in the desert to celebrate Christmas. Their son is Trip Wyeth, a TV producer and their daughter is Brooke Elizabeth. Brooke Elizabeth recently had a nervous breakdown and has returned to her family for consolation, she also brings her latest unpublished novel that she has written after six years. When the family finds out that the novel isn’t really fiction but is based on the memoirs of their troubled past, many a conflicts and bitter feelings are raised from the dead, especially about the death of Brooke’s elder brother Henry. What makes the play really beautiful is the excellent selection of dialogues and compilations of scenes. The whole drama is set in the beige colored living room of the family house where they all gather for dinner on the Christmas Eve.
 


Other Desert Cities is the winner of The New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award. The New York Times declared it as the most “richly enjoyable” new play. It has also won the Outer Critics Circle Award for “Outstanding New Off-Broadway Production”. If you also wish to watch this award winning play live on stage, grab your Other Desert Cities tickets today!