Press Releases

March 7, 2002
The Legacy Continues: Southampton Players Stage "The Lion in Winter"

James Goldman's Medieval Tale of Royal Deception Has its Own Storied History

Contact:
Darren Johnson (PR@southampton.liu.edu)
(631) 287 8313
Fax: (631) 283 4081

First there was the heralded 1966 Broadway play, then, two years later, the star-studded Hollywood movie was released, and it found new life again in a 1999 Broadway revival. James Goldman's masterpiece, "The Lion in Winter," has a history of its own that is almost as storied as King Henry II's historical tale.

Now, it is being revived once more, this April 5-7 and 12-14 at Southampton College.

Ken McGuire, left, plays King Henry in The Southampton Players production.

Goldman's play had two Broadway runs. The original production had its premiere on March 3, 1966, and starred Robert Preston, Rosemary Harris and a young Christopher Walken. It opened to rave reviews and led to a movie deal for Goldman.

The 1968 movie, directed by Anthony Harvey, is considered a classic and was a springboard for actors Timothy Dalton and Anthony Hopkins. Goldman won an Oscar for his screenplay adaptation. Katharine Hepburn won an Oscar for Best Actress. Peter O?Toole won a Golden Globe for Best Actor. In 1999, Stockard Channing and Laurence Fishburne starred in a revival that met more critical acclaim. Under the direction of Michael Disher in a new production in the Avram Theater, the Southampton Players are staging the timeless classic.

" 'Lion' should be a part of every college theater's vocabulary. I was fortunate to have experienced this piece while in school and Mr. Goldman's words have stayed with me these many years. His characters are lush, multicolored tapestries that deserve unraveling and reweaving. In my opinion, 'Lion' is a perfect script," Disher said. "This version may be as raw and uninhibited as its inhabitants. Rich, very rich. Every word carries weight."

With "The Lion in Winter," which will be staged on consecutive weekends, April 5-7 and 12-14, The Southampton Players relive the pageantry that was the 12th-century English empire. Show times are 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturday and 6 p.m. on Sundays. Tickets are $15/$10 students and seniors. Call 631-287-8480 for reservations.

The drama deals with family betrayal and intrigue, with seven royal characters who all try to deceive each other for personal gain and power. Set in 1183 in King Henry II's English castle during a Christmas court, the king (Ken McGuire) is a feared monarch, but fears his own mortality and must select a successor. He favors his youngest son John (Derek Barbanti), a brat who merely uses his father's affection.

Henry has a young mistress, Alais Capet (Scarlett Arbuckle), who is the sister of the King of France, but he would like her to marry John in order to maintain England's French territory. She resists, but Henry tries to persuade her that they will be able to remain lovers even if she marries John.

Add to the mix King Henry's wife, Eleanor of Aquitaine (MH Washington), whose marital problems also include her being kept in captivity most of the year for raising a rebellion against her husband. Treacherous and traitorous sons Geoffrey (Brian Donnelly) and Richard the Lionhearted (Jeff Schaeffer) also have their eyes on the throne while France's King Philip (William Downes) seeks to further unsettle the English monarchy.

McGuire, Donnelly, Schaeffer and Arbuckle are Southampton Players favorites who teamed together last year in the critically lauded production "Look Homeward, Angel." Downes and Barbanti are promising newcomers to a troupe that has become one of Eastern Long Island's most popular, running five productions each season and selling out regularly. Washington is a veteran actress who makes her debut with the troupe in the role Hepburn made famous.