In the 5,000 years they’ve been married, George and Maggie Antrobus have survived wars, plagues, floods, and everything in between. Now they're running low on food – and a massive glacier is headed toward their New Jersey home. An epic, timely comedy about the endurance of human spirit, Thornton Wilder’s THE SKIN OF OUR TEETH follows one “everyfamily” through the great struggles and triumphs of the human experience. Led by innovative director Lileana Blain-Cruz in a production that speaks directly to our current moment, this Pulitzer Prize-winning classic with additional material by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins is a profound reminder that life is always worth living – no matter how difficult things get.
As an absurdist meditation on resilience, 'The Skin of Our Teeth' (which premiered on Broadway in 1942) is still relevant today, but its larger life lessons hardly seem revolutionary. We've already spent the past two years in a deeply intimate relationship with endurance. Surely, we will have to again. My advice? Surrender to the creativity of 'Skin' which, in 2022, is best viewed as a theatrical vessel for the many great talents currently working in American theater. A play this long and zany would have a harder time holding attention if not for the 28 cast members' unrelenting commitment to crazy. Gabby Beans, in particular, as the Antrobuses' high-octane housemaid Sabina, gives the best comedic performance I've seen all year. Almost Disney-like in her zealousness, Beans adopts the voice of Yzma from 'The Emperor's New Groove' and spritelyness of Edna Mode from 'The Incredibles,' then drops the act to assure us that she, too, is confused: 'Don't take this play serious. The world's not coming to an end. You know it's not. People exaggerate!'
Thornton Wilder's allegorical play 'The Skin of Our Teeth' is bizarre, abstract and convoluted; it's not to be taken seriously. Or so Sabina (Gabby Beans) tells the audience at Lincoln Center Theater's Broadway revival of the 1942 Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Thornton Wilder. But don't listen to her: There are definitely things to take seriously here, as the themes of this 80-year-old work, courageously but unevenly directed by Lileana Blain-Cruz, remain relevant and vital to be reckoned with by contemporary audiences.
2022 | Broadway |
Lincoln Center Broadway Revival Production Broadway |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2022 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Puppet Design | James Ortiz |
2022 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Awards | Gabby Beans |
2022 | Drama League Awards | Founders Award for Excellence in Directing | Lileana Blain-Cruz |
2022 | Drama League Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Play | The Skin Of Our Teeth |
2022 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Scenic Design (Play or Musical) | Adam Rigg |
2022 | Tony Awards | Best Costume Design of a Play | Montana Levi Blanco |
2022 | Tony Awards | Best Direction of a Play | Lileana Blain-Cruz |
2022 | Tony Awards | Best Lighting Design of a Play | Yi Zhao |
2022 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play | Gabby Beans |
2022 | Tony Awards | Best Scenic Design of a Play | Adam Rigg |
2022 | Tony Awards | Best Sound Design of a Play | Palmer Hefferan |
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