Interludes

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The past looms large in Jez Butterworth’s haunted new drama THE HILLS OF CALIFORNIA

• By drediman
• September 30, 2024
• No Comments

Last night, the Broadway transfer of Jez Butterworth’s haunted new drama The Hills of California opened at the Broadhurst Theatre (the play premiered earlier this year in London’s West End). The play is in many ways a departure for Butterworth, whose muscular previous efforts — those would be Jerusalem and The Ferryman — proved to be award-winning sensations on both sides of the pond. In his latest, the playwright switches gears from those epic canvases, penning what is essentially a domestic family drama about four sisters who reunite at a family-run guesthouse to bid farewell to their dying mother. Over the course of the evening, the play toggles back and forth between the aforementioned present and the sisters’ childhood, much of which was spent being relentlessly groomed by their mother to break into the music industry (as knock-offs of the Andrews Sisters).

Throughout, there are strong shades of both the classic musical Gypsy, as well as the pungent plays of Tennessee Williams (the highly anticipated revival of the former is set to begin performances next door at the Majestic Theatre this fall). As always, Butterworth’s writing is alive with character and full of detail. Although large stretches of the play grimly depict life in an unflattering light, there are occasional flashes of transcendence sprinkled throughout, particularly when the sisters harmonize — often tentatively — in song. Despite admiring the work a great deal when I saw it in London, I nevertheless had the nagging feeling that it just missed the mark for greatness. Thankfully, Butterworth has honed the play on its way to the Great White Way, particularly with respect to its conclusion, in which a pivotal plot point has been omitted altogether (no spoilers here). The modification has noticeably altered the emotional landscape of the play, which previously struck me as a tad manipulative. On Broadway, the third and final act has emerged as a poetic meditation on trauma and memory, tying up the main themes of the play in an eloquent manner.

Sam Mendes’s has given The Hills of California a clear-eyed, richly atmospheric production in which the past looms large. The marvelously lived-in rotating set by Rob Howell — which soars vertically into the fly space and features shadowy recesses in which memories fester — efficiently transitions the memory play between time periods. The large cast is superb all around, particularly the women. Reprising their roles as the four Webb sisters are Leanne Best, Ophelia Lovibond, Helena Wilson, and Laura Donnelly — all of whom continue to give distinguished and distinguishing performances (also reprising their roles, just as affectingly, are the actresses playing their young versions). If anything, their work has even gotten more focused and nuanced. Leading the way is Donnelly, who also plays the family’s matriarch in the flashback scenes. It’s a powerhouse performance that’s practically the engine that propels the play forward.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

THE HILLS OF CALIFORNIA
Broadway, Play
Broadhurst Theatre
2 hours, 45 minutes (with one intermission)
Through December 22