Take Me Out (play)

Last updated
Take Me Out
TakeMeOut.jpg
Written by Richard Greenberg
Characters
  • Darren Lemming
  • Kippy Sunderstrom
  • Mason Marzac
  • Shane Mungitt
  • Davey Battle
  • Toddy Koovitz
  • Rodriguez
  • Martinez
  • Skipper
  • William R. Danziger
  • Jason Chenier
  • Takeshi Kawabata
  • Policemen
Date premiered2002
Place premiered Donmar Warehouse
London, England
Original languageEnglish
Subject Homophobia, racism, and class in sport
GenreDrama
SettingA baseball locker room

Take Me Out is a play by American playwright Richard Greenberg. After a staging at the Donmar Warehouse in London, it premiered Off-Broadway on September 5, 2002 at the Joseph Papp Public Theater. It made its Broadway debut on February 27, 2003 at the Walter Kerr Theatre, where it ran for 355 performances and won the 2003 Tony Award for Best Play. A Broadway revival opened at the Hayes Theater on April 4, 2022.

Contents

Background

While Glenn Burke was out to teammates and team owners in the 1970s and Billy Bean came out in 1999 after retiring from playing in Major League Baseball for eight seasons, at the time of the writing of this play no Major League Baseball player had ever come out to the public during his career. This play is the dramatic exploration of what such an event might be like.

Playwright Greenberg has stated that one of the compulsions for creating a baseball play was his complete immersion into the sport in 1999 after following the New York Yankees' (then-)record 114-win season the previous year, beginning with David Wells' perfect game. [1] Many believe the inspiration for Darren Lemming is former American Major League Baseball player Derek Jeter of the Yankees, and for racist pitcher Shane Mungitt, former National League pitcher John Rocker, then of the Atlanta Braves. [2] [3] [4]

Plot

Much of the play is set in the locker room of a professional baseball team, and as such has an all-male cast that explores themes of homophobia, racism, class, and masculinity in sports.

Act I

Darren Lemming, a star mixed-race center fielder for the fictional Empires Major League Baseball team, comes out as gay. His friend and teammate Kippy Sunderstrom warns Darren that the team will feel uncomfortable about his sexual orientation, but is brushed off by Darren. As Kippy wonders why Darren chose that particular moment in time to come out, a flashback to a week earlier shows Darren having drinks with his best friend Davey Battle, a religious player on a rival team. Davey tells Darren that he should want his true nature known to the world. Later, Darren meets with his new accountant Mason Marzac, a gay man uninterested in baseball until Darren's coming out.

The Empires fall into a slump, prompting relief pitcher Shane Mungitt to be brought up from the minor leagues. Shane tells the team that as a child, he was raised in orphanages after his father killed his mother and then himself in a murder-suicide. The team begins winning games again, but in a television interview, Mungitt expresses his discomfort with "colored people" on the team, and that he has to shower every night with a "faggot."

Act II

Shane is suspended due to the interview, causing the team to fall back into its slump. He writes an apology letter that is leaked to the public, which combined with the details about his tragic childhood, causes public sympathy to shift in his favor. Shane returns to the team, despite Darren's threat to retire in protest. In the locker room showers, Darren derides Shane for his racism and homophobia, and mockingly kisses him. In the game, Shane is sent to pitch against Davey Battle; the ball hits Davey's head, killing him.

Act III

In a flashback to Darren and Davey's final encounter, Davey angrily accuses Darren of using his straight-and-narrow public reputation to conceal his sexuality. Shane is permanently suspended from major league baseball, and arrested for questioning after players say they heard him muttering about wanting to "kill someone" before the game. He refuses to speak to the police, stating that he will only talk to Kippy. Kippy is joined by Darren, and as Kippy attempts to determine whether the pitch that killed Davey was intentional, Shane discloses that the apology letter was written by Kippy on Shane's behalf.

In narration, Kippy states to the audience that the Empires went on to win the World Series, and no charges were ever filed against Shane. Kippy expresses to Darren his desire to again be friends, and Darren invites Mason to the end-of-season party.

Productions

London premiere

The show premiered at the Donmar Warehouse in London on June 20, 2002. [5] The production was directed by Joe Mantello and starred Daniel Sunjata, Denis O'Hare, Neal Huff, Frederick Weller, Kevin Carroll, Dominic Fumusa, Gene Gabriel, Robert M. Jimenez, Joe Lisi, Kohl Sudduth, and James Yaegashi. It ran until August 3 of the same year.

The production transferred off-Broadway to the Joseph Papp Public Theater later that year with the same cast and direction where it ran until 2003.

Original Broadway production

The next year, the show transferred to the Walter Kerr Theatre on Broadway with the same cast [6] with the exception of Dominic Fumusa, who was replaced by David Eigenberg. It opened on February 27, 2003. It featured designs by Scott Pask (scenic), Jess Goldstein (costume), Kevin Adams (lighting), and Janet Kalas (sound). At the 2003 Tony Awards, the production won the award for Best Play, Mantello won Best Direction of a Play, and O'Hare won Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play. It closed on January 4, 2004 after 355 performances.

Broadway revival

A Broadway revival opened at the Hayes Theater on April 4, 2022. It was originally scheduled to begin previews on April 2, 2020 and officially open on April 23. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the show suspended production on March 12. The cast is made up of Jesse Williams, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Patrick J. Adams, Michael Oberholtzer, Brandon L. Dirden, Carl Lundstedt, Hiram Delgado, Ken Marks, Eduardo Ramos, Tyler Lansing Weaks, and Julian Cihi. [7] [8] [9] The production is directed by Scott Ellis and has a production team including David Rockwell (scenic), Linda Cho (costumes), Kenneth Posner (lighting), and Fitz Patton (sound). The production began previews on March 10, 2022 and officially opened on April 4. It closed on June 11. [10] [11] [12] [13]

The Broadway revival has a very strict policy regarding phones and requires that all audience members place their phones in locked Yondr pouches prior to the show. However, on May 9, 2022, a video leaked online of a scene of Williams during the shower scene in which he is fully nude. The Actors' Equity Association, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, and 2nd Stage, owner the Helen Hayes Theater, released statements sharing their disgust. The latter stated they would be adding additional staff to enforce the "no phones" policy. [14] [15]

On June 12, 2022, the Broadway revival won Best Revival of a Play at the 75th Tony Awards.

The revival was remounted at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre and began performances on October 27, 2022 for a limited run of 14 weeks. [16] Due to previous filming engagement, Adams was unable to return and Bill Heck assumed the role of Kippy for the return engagement.

Other productions

Singapore

A limited-run production opened at the DBS Arts Centre in Singapore on January 8, 2014 and closed on January 31.

Notable casts

CharacterLondon
2002		Original Broadway
2003		Singapore
2014		Broadway Revival
2022
Darren Lemming Daniel Sunjata Juan Jackson Jesse Williams
Mason Marzac Denis O'Hare Hayden Tee Jesse Tyler Ferguson
Kippy Sunderstrom Neal Huff Tim Garner Patrick J. Adams / Bill Heck
Shane Mungitt Frederick Weller Chris BuckoMichael Oberholtzer
Davey Battle Kevin Carroll Johnny James Brandon J. Dirden
Toddy Koovitz Dominic Fumusa David Eigenberg Seth AdamsCarl Lundstedt
Rodriguez/Policeman Gene Gabriel Ren RoblesEduardo Ramos
Martinez/PolicemanRobert M. JimenezJejie EsguerraHiram Delgado
Skipper/William R. Danziger Joe Lisi Paul LucasKen Marks
Jason Chenier Kohl Sudduth Kynan FrancisTyler Lansing Weaks
Takeshi Kawabata James Yaegashi Hiro Mizuhara Julian Cihi

Awards and nominations

Original Broadway production

YearAwardCategoryNominated workResult
2003 Tony Award Best Play Won
Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play Denis O'Hare Won
Daniel Sunjata Nominated
Best Direction of a Play Joe Mantello Won
Drama Desk Award Outstanding Play Won
Outstanding Actor in a Play Daniel Sunjata Nominated
Outstanding Director of a Play Joe Mantello Nominated
Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play Denis O'Hare Won
Frederick Weller Nominated
Outstanding Set Design Scott Pask Nominated
Outstanding Sound Design in a Play Janet KalasNominated
Outstanding Lighting Design Kevin Adams Nominated
Drama League Award Drama League Award for Distinguished Production of a PlayWon
Lucille Lortel Award Outstanding PlayWon
New York Drama Critics' Circle Award Best PlayWon
Pulitzer Prize Pulitzer Prize for Drama Nominated

2022 Broadway Revival

YearAwardCategoryNominated workResult
2022 Tony Awards [17] Best Revival of a Play Won
Best Featured Actor in a Play Jesse Tyler Ferguson Won
Michael OberholtzerNominated
Jesse Williams Nominated
Drama Desk Awards Outstanding Actor in a Play Jesse Tyler Ferguson Nominated
Drama League Awards [18] Outstanding Revival of a Broadway or Off-Broadway PlayWon
Distinguished Performance Award Jesse Williams Nominated
Jesse Tyler Ferguson Nominated
Outer Critics Circle Awards [19] Outstanding Revival of a Play (Broadway or Off-Broadway)Won
Outstanding Actor in a Play Patrick J Adams Nominated
Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play Jesse Tyler Ferguson Won
Michael OberholtzerNominated
Outstanding Director of a Play Scott Ellis Nominated
Theatre World Award [20] Patrick J Adams Honoree

TV series

In August 2021, it was reported that Anonymous Content would be adapting the play into a limited television series. Jesse Williams will star and Scott Ellis will direct the pilot written by Greenberg. [21]

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References

  1. ↑ Drukman, Steven (October 2002). "Greenberg's Got Game". Archived 2011-01-01 at the Wayback Machine . American Theatre.
  2. ↑ Dominguez, Robert (September 6, 2002). "He Leads the League in Controversy". New York Daily News . Retrieved May 30, 2022.
  3. ↑ Brantley, Brad (2003-02-28). "Love Affair With Baseball And a Lot of Big Ideas". The New York Times . Retrieved 2010-12-25.
  4. ↑ Stanislawski, Ethan (2009-04-09). "The Top 10 Quotes from English-language Drama This Decade: 5-3". Tynan's Anger. Retrieved 2010-12-25.
  5. ↑ "Past Productions" Donmar Warehouse. Accessed 2019-10-29.
  6. ↑ Jones, Kenneth (2002-12-23). "Original Take Me Out' Cast, Minus One, Will Transfer to Bway Run". Archived 2014-01-12 at the Wayback Machine Playbill .
  7. ↑ Clement, Olivia (November 1, 2019). "Suits Star Patrick J. Adams Joins Broadway Revival of Take Me Out". Playbill. Retrieved 2019-11-01.
  8. ↑ Clement, Olivia (June 5, 2019). "Jesse Tyler Ferguson to Join Jesse Williams in Take Me Out on Broadway". Playbill. Retrieved 2019-06-13.
  9. ↑ "Joél Pérez, Brandon J. Dirden & More Complete Cast for TAKE ME OUT on Broadway". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2020-01-03.
  10. ↑ Clement, Olivia (May 12, 2020). "Check the Statuses of Broadway Shows During the Coronavirus Shutdown". Playbill. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
  11. ↑ Paulson, Michael (2020-03-12). "Broadway Will Shut Down After Governor Limits Attendance". The New York Times . Retrieved 2020-03-12. Facing concern from actors and audiences about health risks during the pandemic, the industry announced that shows will be shuttered through April 12.
  12. ↑ McPhee, Ryan (May 7, 2021). "2nd Stage to Bring Between Riverside and Crazy to Broadway, Joining Lynn Nottage Play and Take Me Out". Playbill. Retrieved 2021-05-08.
  13. ↑ "'Take Me Out' pushes back Broadway previews to March 10". Broadway News. 2021-12-17. Retrieved 2022-03-03.
  14. ↑ Patterson, Charmaine (May 11, 2022). "Actors' Equity Calls Jesse Williams' Nude Video Leak 'Sexual Harassment' and a 'Breach of Consent'". People . Retrieved May 11, 2022.
  15. ↑ Culwell-Block, Logan (May 11, 2022). "Second Stage Pledges to Add Staff After Footage of Take Me Out Leaks Online". Playbill. Retrieved May 30, 2022.
  16. ↑ Herrington, Nicole (2022-08-18). "'Take Me Out' to Return to Broadway This Fall". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2022-08-18.
  17. ↑ Paulson, Michael (May 9, 2022). "Tony Nominations 2022 Live Updates: 'A Strange Loop' Leads With 11, Including Best Musical" . The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved May 9, 2022.
  18. ↑ Rosky, Nicole. "2022 Drama League Awards Nominations Announced- Full List!". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved April 26, 2022.
  19. ↑ "The Lehman Trilogy, Kimberly Akimbo & Harmony Lead 2022 Outer Critics Circle Award Nominations". Broadway.com. Retrieved April 26, 2022.
  20. ↑ "Theatre World Awards 2022". New York Theater. May 6, 2022. Retrieved May 6, 2022.
  21. ↑ White, Peter (August 9, 2021). "Jesse Williams To Star In TV Adaptation Of 'Take Me Out' Play From Anonymous Content". Deadline Hollywood .

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