Glenn Close as Roy Cohn from Angels in America
Angels in America
Glenn Close, Laura Linney, Patti LuPone, Lois Smith, S. Epatha Merkerson, Linda Emond, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Andrew Rannells and Jeremy O. Harris are all presenting Angels in America the famed story written by Tony Kushner, a play about the AIDS epidemic.
This is a benefit for amfAR, but viewers will be able to stream the hourlong virtual performance on the YouTube channel of broadway.com
What is truly remarkable about this production is that all 15 actors filmed themselves remotely and have been edited together to make it appear that they are all together in the same room.
Director Ellie Hayman allowed the performers to cast themselves in the amfAR fundraiser. Some of the artists have decided to break the mould set by the original production with Brian Tyree Henry playing character Prior Walter and Glenn Close playing Roy Cohn. The character Prior Walter in the original script is indicated as caucasian and the character of Roy Cohn is a man and being played by Close.
Glenn Close has her own wig and make up artist, her scenes were shot in the Montana home, the camera operator was her niece. Glenn Close plays tragic closeted gay lawyer Roy Cohn.
Lois Smith, acting legend who got a break in the James Dean film East of Eden, is playing the role of drug addicted housewife, Harper Pitts.
Angels in America premiered in 1993 and is a two part play about the the lives of two couples during the AIDS epidemic or “Gay Cancer” as it unfortunately was referred in the early years. The story is about how two couples lives unravel amid the AIDS crisis.
To create this amazing production for the amfAR fundraiser it was a six week labor of love for editors to push the boundaries of creativity and delve into the hours and hours of footage shot by the actors in their homes.
Launched in 1985, amfAR aims to end the HIV epidemic through research. in 2020 the group has focused its attention to another pandemic gripping the globe, Covid-19. AmfAR will still maintain its HIV work and research but will award research grants to help fight Covid-19 this year.
Angels in America is a complex play that examines AIDS and homosexuality in America in the 1980s.
If you are feeling generous, donations of $100 and above will grant you access to a live conversation with playwright Tony Kushner, director Ellie Hayman, amfAR CEO Robert Frost and several of the actors.
The free screening is available to view from October 8th, 8pm on the broadway.com YouTube channel.
