Ewan McGregor Sets Broadway Debut in ‘The Real Thing’

NEW YORK — Ewan McGregor will make his Broadway debut next season in a revival of Tom Stoppard‘s multiple Tony-winning 1982 play, The Real Thing, staged by in-demand director Sam Gold.

A witty and affecting drama about love, marriage and fidelity, in which life imitates art, it centers on playwright Henry as he attempts to grapple with the complexities of romantic relationships through his writing. Henry is unhappily married to Charlotte, an actress starring in his play about a crumbling marriage. To complicate things, Henry is in love with Annie, the activist wife of Charlotte’s co-star Max. But when Henry and Annie leave their respective partners to be together, the playwright begins to question whether their love is fiction or fact.

McGregor will play Henry in the revival, with casting of the remaining roles to be announced at a later date.

Produced by Roundabout Theatre Company, The Real Thing will begin previews at the American Airlines Theatre on Oct. 2, 2014, in a limited engagement scheduled to run through Jan. 4, 2015. Official opening night will be Oct. 30.

The hit 1983 Broadway premiere of the Stoppard play ran for a year and a half. Directed by Mike Nichols, it starred Glenn Close, Jeremy Irons, Christine Baranski, Peter Gallagher and Cynthia Nixon. That production won five Tony Awards, including best play, direction, lead actor (Irons), lead actress (Close) and featured actress (Baranski).

The Real Thing returned to Broadway in a 2000 production directed by David Leveaux that starred Stephen Dillane and Jennifer Ehle. Those actors also collected Tonys for their roles, with the play winning for best revival.

McGregor recently wrapped shooting on Jane Got a Gun, with Natalie Portman and Joel Edgerton, and is currently filming Mortdecai, opposite Johnny Depp and Gwyneth Paltrow. He will next be seen onscreen in the Weinstein Co.’s Dec. 25 release, August: Osage County, starring Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts. (Watch the trailer below.)

The Scottish actor’s London stage credits include starring in the West End as Sky Masterson alongside Jane Krakowski in Guys and Dolls; and playing Iago opposite Chiwetel Ejiofor in the title role of Othello at the Donmar Warehouse.

Gold’s Broadway directing credits include Theresa Rebeck‘s Seminar and the Roundabout revival of William Inge‘s Picnic. He recently directed the off-Broadway musical Fun Home, which opened last week at the Public Theater to rave reviews.