Synopsis: This play takes place in 1962, in Rome, where a fading movie star, Rodney, and his wife of 10 years find themselves entangled in an unraveling web of secrets and lies that threatens to undermine their family's tenuous bond. The latest work by the acclaimed writer-director Richard Nelson is both an elegiac look at Americans finding themselves in a foreign land, and a white-hot observation of a family torn apart by sexual impropriety.

Cast:
David Strathairn .... Rodney
Haviland Morris .... Fay
Maryann Plunkett .... Eva
John Rothman .... Henry
Susan May Pratt ... Rodney's Daughter *
Tom Sodaski .... Ted *

* replaced by Jessica Chastain and Jesse Pennington for the run at Playwrights Horizons

Notes:
• Rodney's Wife was written and directed (both productions) by Richard Nelson, whose other writing and/or director credits include Franny's Way, James Joyce's The Dead, Goodnight Children Everywhere, The Vienna Notes and Jungle Coup.
• The run at the Williamstown Theatre Festival marked the premiere production of Rodney's Wife.

Critical Praise & Commentary:
• "Mr. Strathairn, an accomplished stage actor who has logged plenty of time on film sets, zeroes in on the defeated, jaded aspects of an alcoholic movie star past his prime. He quietly summons both the hungry ego and the childlike passivity of his character, who, after all, is dependent on the fluctuating kindness of producers and fans." -Ben Brantley, New York Times

• "Most notable in the company are Maryann Plunkett's heartbreaking Eva; David Strathairn's Rodney, both garrulous and infantile; and John Rothman's strangely distant Henry." -Andy Propst, American Theater Web

• "Strathairn acts up a storm..." -William Stevenson, Broadway.com

• "Rodney--played with intentionally damp theatrics by the subtle David Strathairn--has brought his family and manager along while he films an early spaghetti Western." -Linda Winer, Newsday.com

Related Links:
Williamstown Theatre Festival - Rodney's Wife (off site)
Playwrights Horizons (off site)