The Little Foxes

4 out of 5 Stars

Lillian Hellman’s play, The Little Foxes (Tony Award nomination – Best Revival), was first performed on Broadway in 1939 but it remains a thoroughly modern play with themes that are relevant today.  Grab the arms of your seat and be prepared for heaping doses of greed, sibling rivalry, scheming, manipulation, exploitation of the community, self-aggrandizement, domestic abuse, racial bias, parent/child clashes, and more greed.

Now add the prodigious talents of Laura Linney (Tony Award nomination – Best Actress) and Cynthia Nixon (Tony Award nomination – Best Featured Actress) and you have yourself a powerhouse theatrical experience.  But wait, there’s more - Ms. Linney and Ms. Nixon alternate the roles as Regina Giddens and Birdie Hubbard - and these characters are truly polar opposites.  See for yourself with this video. These two women are already great favorites of ours and this just takes our admiration to new levels.

Ms. Nixon as Regina and Ms. Linney as Birdie. Photo by Joan Marcus

Ms. Linney as Regina and Ms. Nixon as Birdie. Photo by Joan Marcus

Richard Thomas (Tony Award nomination – Best Featured Actor) as Regina’s long-suffering husband, Horace, also gives a commanding performance.  And adding wit and much-needed common sense to the mix are the hired domestics Addie and Cal, most capably played by Caroline Stefanie Clay and Charles Turner.

Photos by Joan Marcus

This Manhattan Theatre Club production would not be what it is without the venerable director Daniel Sullivan (Tony Award nomination – Best Director).  Some of our most unforgettable theater experiences have been plays he has directed including Sight Unseen (with Laura Linney), Intimate Apparel, and Rabbit Hole (with Cynthia Nixon).

This play and its troubling themes have languished with me well beyond the final curtain.  The staying power of this commanding work is a true testiment to the brilliance of Lillian Hellman.

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Why We Went: Lillian, Laura, and Cynthia

MSG