Following their triumphant production of The Ferryman, Tony®-winning Playwright Jez Butterworth and Oscar and Tony-winning Director Sam Mendes reunite for The Hills of California.
In the sweltering heat of a 1970s summer, the Webb sisters return to their childhood home in Blackpool, an English seaside town, where their mother Veronica lies dying upstairs. Gloria and Ruby now have families of their own. Jill never left. And Joan? No one’s heard from her in twenty years… but Jill insists that their mother’s favorite won’t let them down this time.
The run-down Sea View Guest House is haunted by bittersweet memories of amusement park rides and overdue bills. Back in the 1950s, each night the girls rehearse their singing act, managed by their fiercely loving single mom. But when a record producer offers a shot at fame and a chance to escape, it will cost them all dearly.
This is not the kind of play that brandishes a singular sharp point; it is the kind that swaddles you in innumerable impressions. Like Butterworth’s previous Broadway outings — the mythopoetic “Jerusalem” in 2011, the brawny Hugh Jackman vehicle “The River” in 2014 and especially the Irish fable “The Ferryman” in 2018 — “The Hills of California” is a yarn, not a lesson; a tale, not a tract. It resists interpretation, possibly as a way of resisting criticism, which, despite its flaws, it clearly does with great success.
Of the large cast, it’s necessary to stress the quality performances of all concerned. First by length and commitment to her goal is Donnelly, who tackles the potent role with both hands clenched. (She also serves eerily in another crucial bit.) Those playing the 1976 and 1955 Webbs are unfailingly strong, Lovibond possessing maybe the best pipes. Other standouts among the full ensemble standouts are Ta-Rea Campbell as seen-it-all nurse Penny, Barnes as shrewd manager St. John, Richard Lumsden as in-house piano accompanist Joe Fogg, and Bryan Dick as both Dennis and wise-cracking Jack Larkin.
2024 | West End |
West End |
2024 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
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