Second Stage Theater presents Grand Horizons, written by Bess Wohl, directed by Leigh Silverman and co-commissioned by Williamstown Theatre Festival, as part of its 2019-2020 Broadway season.
Inspired by the growing trend of ‘grey divorce’ when older couples separate after many years of marriage, Grand Horizons puts an underrepresented demographic of senior citizens squarely in the spotlight of Broadway. This has attracted a top calibre, multi-generational cast of actors to Second Stage Theater, led by Emmy Award winner James Cromwell and Emmy & Tony Award winner Jane Alexander, with stellar support from “Gotham” star Ben McKenzie, Drama Desk Award winner Michael Urie, Tony Award nominee Ashley Park, “30 Rock” star Maulik Pancholy, and Tony Award winner Priscilla Lopez.
An Oscar nominee for his beloved performance as Farmer Hoggett in the 1995 family classic “Babe,” James Cromwell has enjoyed a formidable career on both stage and screen, receiving an Emmy Award in 2013 for “American Horror Story,” following previous Emmy nominations for “Six Feet Under,” “ER,” and “RKO 281.” Gracing the Broadway stage for the first time in almost three decades, Cromwell takes on the role of Bill in the Broadway premiere of Grand Horizons. Starring opposite him as Nancy, who asks for a divorce from Bill after fifty years of marriage, Jane Alexander has accumulated an astonishing four Oscar nominations, three Golden Globe nominations, and two Emmy Award wins and five further nominations over the years. Her screen credits include the likes of “The Great White Hope,” “All the President’s Men,” “Eleanor and Franklin,” “Kramer vs. Kramer,” “Testament,” and “Warm Springs,” among others. On the Broadway stage, she won a Tony Award in 1969 for The Great White Hope and has since been nominated six times, including her last Broadway venture (Honour) in 1998.
Highly anticipated for this Broadway premiere is the Broadway debut for Ben McKenzie, taking on the role of Ben. Thanks to his work on such popular television shows as “The O.C.” (2003-2007) and “Southland” (2009-2013), Ben has garnered a huge, international fan base. His role as Detective James Gordon in the Batman-prequel “Gotham” (2014-2019) has subsequently made him a superstar. Following the conclusion of “Gotham,” it is incredibly exciting to see that he has chosen Broadway as his next artistic venture.
Grand Horizons promises to be a comic and yet profoundly moving portrait of a family in crisis.
(Photos by Joan Marcus)