About the Show

Michael Shannon and Ruth Wilson star in Rebecca Frecknall's revival of Eugene O'Neill's familial drama.

On a desolate Connecticut farm in 1923, Josie Hogan dreams of a life beyond the confines of her family's land. Abandoned by her brothers and tethered to her volatile father, her aspirations seem distant. James Tyrone Jr., their landlord, is a man haunted by his past, seeking solace in alcohol and fleeting connections. When Josie and James share a moonlit night, truths emerge, altering their lives irrevocably.

Eugene O’Neill's A Moon for the Misbegotten is a poignant exploration of redemption, illusion, and the human yearning for connection. Directed by Rebecca Frecknall (A Streetcar Named Desire, Cabaret), this production stars Michael Shannon (George & Tammy, Boardwalk Empire) and Ruth Wilson (The Affair, Luther).

The cast also includes Peter Corboy, Akie Kotabe, and David Threlfall.

Critic Reviews (9)

"Wilson is luminous as Josie. With an American accent laced with traces of its Irish roots, her early teeth-baring and puffed-up bravado dissolves into a heart-wrenching puddle of insecurity and maternal longing in the moonlit company of Jim."
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"You're left eavesdropping on life even as Shannon's James gives off the anguished mien of the walking dead."
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"This is a chance to see a challenging American classic with great clarity."
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"Wilson’s brilliant performance has an inherent dignity that means that the misogyny of the men around her is diminished, shown for what it is"
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"The production itself, though, is anything but dusty. From the first moment, every line is a punch or a jab or a dagger."
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"Watching them bring O’Neill’s dialogue to life compensates for all the moments when the play starts to turn in circles."
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"Breathing fresh life and painfully relatable emotion into Eugene O’Neill’s tender, tawdry tragedy of missed connections and unconsummated longing, this riveting revival seethes with unspoken subtext."
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"Frecknall wreaths her characters in soft bursts of heavenly music and lights that seem to orbit the stage like stars without upsetting the play’s rugged textures"
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