Hurlyburly

This article is about the stage play. For the film of the play, see Hurly Burly (film). For other uses, see Hurlyburly (disambiguation).

Hurlyburly is a dark comedy play by David Rabe, first staged in 1984. The title refers to dialogue from Shakespeare's Macbeth.

Hurlyburly
Theatrical poster for a 2007 production
Written by	David Rabe
Date premiered	1984
Place premiered	Goodman Theatre Chicago, Illinois
Original language	English
Genre	Dark comedy
Setting	Hollywood

Plot

Hurlyburly depicts the intersecting lives of several low-to-mid-level Hollywood players in the 1980s. Fueled by large quantities of drugs, they attempt to find meaning in their isolated, empty lives.

Title origin

The title (meaning "noisy confusion" or "tumult") is derived from dialogue in Act I, Scene I of Shakespeare's Macbeth:

• First Witch: "When shall we three meet again / In thunder, lightning, or in rain?"
• Second Witch: "When the hurlyburly's done, / When the battle's lost and won."

Notable casts

Character	Broadway debut (1984)	Broadway replacements (1985)	Film Adaptation (1998)	Off-Broadway revival (2005)
Eddie	William Hurt	Frank Langella	Sean Penn	Ethan Hawke
Darlene	Sigourney Weaver	Candice Bergen	Robin Wright	Parker Posey
Bonnie	Judith Ivey	Christine Baranski	Meg Ryan	Catherine Kellner
Donna	Cynthia Nixon	Lauren Tom	Anna Paquin	Halley Wegryn Gross
Phil	Harvey Keitel	Danny Aiello	Chazz Palminteri	Bobby Cannavale
Mickey	Ron Silver	Christopher Walken	Kevin Spacey	Josh Hamilton
Artie	Jerry Stiller	Kevin Spacey	Garry Shandling	Wallace Shawn

Production history

The play's first staging was produced by the Goodman Theatre in Chicago. It opened Off-Broadway at Manhattan's Promenade Theatre in June 1984. The Broadway production, directed by Mike Nichols, opened on August 7, 1984 at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre, where it ran for 343 performances. The original cast included William Hurt, Christopher Walken, Harvey Keitel, Jerry Stiller, Judith Ivey, Sigourney Weaver, and Cynthia Nixon.

Nixon was performing in The Real Thing at the same time.^[1] (The timing of her entrance and exit in each play allowed her to run back and forth between the two theatres, located two blocks from each other.) Replacements later in the run included Danny Aiello, Susan Anton, Christine Baranski, Frank Langella, Ron Silver, John Rubinstein and Candice Bergen.

In 1997, a version opened in the West End at the Old Vic, starring Daniel Craig, Rupert Graves, Andy Serkis, David Tennant, Jenny Seagrove, and Susannah Doyle.

A 2005 Off-Broadway revival was produced by The New Group, and starred Ethan Hawke, Josh Hamilton, Bobby Cannavale, Parker Posey, Wallace Shawn, Halley Wegryn Gross, and Catherine Kellner.^[2] Elizabeth Berkley took over from Catherine Kellner and received much praise, with Charles Isherwood of The New York Times even going as far as apologizing to her for his past criticisms of her ability, stating that the fact she held "her own among this skilled company of scene-stealers is a testament to how much her talent has grown".^[3] The production received critical acclaim and garnered a Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Revival of a Play.^[4][5]

Awards and nominations

Original Broadway production

Year	Award	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
1985	Tony Awards	Tony Award for Best Play	David Rabe	Nominated	[6]
		Best Featured Actor in a Play	William Hurt	Nominated
		Best Featured Actress in a Play	Judith Ivey	Won
		Best Featured Actress in a Play	Sigourney Weaver	Nominated
	Drama Desk Award	Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play	Judith Ivey	Won

2005 Off-Broadway revival

Year	Award	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
2005	Drama Desk Award	Outstanding Revival of a Play		Nominated	[7]
	Lucille Lortel Award	Outstanding Revival		Nominated

Film adaptation

Main article: Hurlyburly (film)

Rabe wrote the screenplay for a 1998 film version directed by Anthony Drazan.^[8] He condensed the action into two hours and updated the setting from the mid-1980s to the late 1990s. The cast included Sean Penn, Kevin Spacey, Chazz Palminteri, Robin Wright Penn, Garry Shandling, Anna Paquin, and Meg Ryan.^[8] Penn's performance won him the Volpi Cup and Drazan was nominated for the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival. Penn also was nominated Best Male Lead at the Independent Spirit Awards.