L.A. Times
Bette Midler bringing Sue Mengers play to Geffen Playhouse
Sept. 19, 2013
The late Hollywood talent agent Sue Mengers will rise again in Los Angeles when Bette Midler reprises her recent Broadway starring role in “I’ll Eat You Last” at the Geffen Playhouse. The production is scheduled to run for three weeks at the Geffen with an opening set for Dec. 5.
“I’ll Eat You Last: A Chat with Sue Mengers,” written by the prolific John Logan, is a solo show in which Midler incarnates the colorful Hollywood agent as she holds court in her Beverly Hills home.
Mengers, who died in 2011, was an agent to some of the biggest movie stars of the 1970s, including Barbra Streisand, Steve McQueen, Ali MacGraw and Faye Dunaway.
The play opened at the Booth Theatre in New York in late April and ran for two months. Though the production was snubbed at the Tony Awards, it proved to be a box-office success, recouping its initial investment of $2.4 million.
Joe Mantello, who directed the Broadway production, will return to stage the play at the Geffen.
The Geffen will produce the play in its largest space, the Gil Cates Theater. The previously announced production of “Coney Island Christmas,” which was set to run in December, has been canceled due to scheduling conflicts among its creative team, according to the company.
Preview performances of “I’ll Eat You Last” are scheduled to begin at the Geffen on Dec. 3.
Tickets are available to Geffen Playhouse subscribers beginning Sept. 27 and to the general public in October.
I thought a run shotter than NYC’s 2 months wasn’t possible. Three weeks is REALLY a small run. People on the West Coast must run for the play is delicious and Miss M is divine in it.
OOOH glad I live in LA!
I’M LOVING IT!