On the heels of her Academy Award-winning, breakout performance in 12 Years a Slave, LUPITA NYONG'O stunned critics and audiences in the Public Theater's sold-out hit ECLIPSED- the "scorching and powerful" (The Guardian) new play by Zimbabwean-American playwright and actress DANAI GURIRA (star of AMC's "The Walking Dead" and co-author of In the Continuum). Now, the global star makes her Broadway debut in this "must-see" (NBC New York) production written, directed and performed entirely by female artists.
ECLIPSED is the story of five extraordinary women brought together by upheaval in their homeland of Liberia. They forge a close-knit community... one that inspires them to feats of increasingly greater strength. Directed by South African-born LIESL TOMMY (The Good Negro, Appropriate), ECLIPSED is a stirring tale of hope, humor and resilience- and the only new play by a woman on Broadway this season.
Plays about the different ways women choose to respond to institutionalized rape during wartime are not standard Broadway fare, and ECLIPSE's transfer from its October-opening run at The Public Theater, should be considered a major achievement, no doubt accelerated by the facts that the playwright is known for her acting role on the popular television series THE WALKING DEAD, and one-fifth of its superb ensemble is Academy Award-winner Lupita Nyong'o.
When experienced in the intimacy of the Public's LuEsther Theater earlier this season, Danai Gurira's searing drama about women's roles in the Liberian civil war had an extraordinarily visceral impact. With only 177 seats in the house, audience and performers seemed to be breathing the same air. One wondered whether that connection would be broken when the show moved to a much larger Broadway theater. Not to worry. The 900-seat Golden Theater was originally designed to be an intimate house, a good fit for small-scaled, serious plays, of which 'Eclipsed' is decidedly one. And while the $95 top-priced ticket was a draw for downtown theatergoers, at a new top of $145, the show hits the sweet spot for the serious New York theater crowd - the ideal audience for this intense drama - that often feels overlooked and underserved on Broadway.
2015 | Off-Broadway |
Public Theatre Original Off-Broadway Production Off-Broadway |
2016 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2016 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play | Saycon Sengbloh |
2016 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Award | Lupita Nyong'o |
2016 | Drama League Awards | Outstanding Production of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Play | Danai Gurira |
2016 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Actress in a Play | Lupita Nyong'o |
2016 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play | Pascale Armand |
2016 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play | Zainab Jah |
2016 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play | Saycon Sengbloh |
2016 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding New Broadway Play | Danai Gurira |
2016 | The Lortels | Outstanding Costume Design | Clint Ramos |
2016 | The Lortels | Outstanding Director | Liesl Tommy |
2016 | Tony Awards | Best Costume Design of a Play | Clint Ramos |
2016 | Tony Awards | Best Direction of a Play | Liesl Tommy |
2016 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play | Pascale Armand |
2016 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play | Saycon Sengbloh |
2016 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play | Lupita Nyong'o |
2016 | Tony Awards | Best Play | Danai Gurira |
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