Suddenly Last Summer at Gunston Arts Center

Suddenly Last Summer

Gunston Arts Center
2700 S. Lang Street Arlington

Set in the hothouse of New Orleans' Garden District, Suddenly Last Summer has all the hallmarks of a Tennessee Williams masterpiece: exotic locales, tortured psyches, glorious, lyrical language, and Williams' gift for creating vivid, unforgettable characters. An elderly socialite mourns the death of her poet son, who died under mysterious circumstances. Eager to protect her son's image, she hires a doctor to silence the only witness to the tragic event - but the shattering truth fights its way to the surface, as it always does in Williams' world.

Thru - Mar 15, 2020

Show Times TBA

Box Office: 703-228-1850

www.avantbard.org

Suddenly Last Summer Reviews

Average Rating based on 5 reviews

Highly Recommended
Recommended
Somewhat Recommended
Not Recommended

DC Theater Arts - Highly Recommended

"...For true comic relief, however, it’s hard to beat Miss Kitty’s turn as Miss Foxhill, Violet’s domestic assistant and, clearly, the brains of the operation. Henley and Kitty have conspired to give her every opportunity to offer mute, hilarious witness to the vanities of the characters Miss Foxhill has to serve, and she doesn’t miss a trick."

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- Andrew Walker White

MetroWeekly - Recommended

"...AvantBard Theatre sets a sultry mood for Tennessee Williams’ Suddenly Last Summer by commencing the evening with Williams’ lesser-known one-act, Talk to Me Like the Rain and Let Me Listen. Featuring an unnamed Woman (Miss Kitty) and Man (Erik Harrison) lounging in a Hell’s Kitchen flophouse, the brief drama — written in 1953, four years before Summer — bears no relationship to the later play, and traverses only the slightest plot of its own."

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- Andre Hereford

MD Theatre Guide - Highly Recommended

"...Go see “Suddenly, Last Summer.” It’s a tightly packed play that will reward you with gorgeous words and some uncomfortable truths—that hold true today. And it only takes 100 minutes to shake you to your core."

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- Mary Ann Johnson

DCTheatreScene - Highly Recommended

"...If you have never encountered Violet and Sebastian Venable's story, do not hesitate to catch this production.If you are a fan of the film version, it is well worth your time to see Avant Bard's production, since this is pure Williams and the movie's screenplay was famously changed by Gore Vidal. Suddenly Last Summer might not have the same curb appeal as The Glass Menagerie or A Streetcar Named Desire, but it has Williams' trademark lyricism and grand characters (with a touch of off-stage grand guignol) to appeal to anyone who likes a juicy drama."

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- Jeffrey Walker

BroadwayWorld - Highly Recommended

"...Perhaps it is Williams' writing, heavy on emotion and the Southern colloquialisms, that sometimes results in overacting but Magee gives a master class on keeping just the right tone - stern, tart, proud and full of cutting remarks as she drives to get what she wants."

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- Roger Catlin

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Suddenly Last Summer at Gunston Arts Center