What exactly is the allure of Broadway?
In following a not so unique trend of movie screen big shots turning to Broadway leading roles, Keira Knightley is currently a member of London Broadway’s cast in “The Misanthrope”. The play is Martin Crimp’s reinterpretation of Molière’s original work and opened this past December amidst positive reviews and record revenue. But what possesses a successful movie actress and Academy Award nominee to shed for a period of time the wealth and fame of Hollywood for the comparably much lower salary and nightly strain of a theatrical production?
There is just something about Broadway.
For decades Broadway has symbolized for actor’s everywhere the golden dream, the epitome of success. Now with the intense fame of Hollywood and the movie industry, Broadway along with the rest of the theater world is marginalized. Yet for some it remains the purest form of acting. The fact that theater perseveres is a form of acknowledgement for the separate challenge and tradition that theater itself represents. Why else would Keira Knightley (with a couple shows in post production and one in development) interrupt her career with a Broadway debut? The fact is that Broadway remains a rite of passage and a dream for every actor on the stage or on the screen.
If you are lucky enough to find yourself in London this spring, it might be worth a trip to the West End’s Comedy Theater to see “The Misanthrope” starring Keira Knightley’s costar Damian Lewis and including cast members Tara FitzGerald and Dominic Rowan.
Photo: playbill.com
