Written by William Inge
Directed by William Pressman
Synopsis: Lola (Merkerson) is a faded beauty queen trapped in a lonely marriage to Doc, a recovering alcoholic on the brink of relapse. When a pretty young woman becomes a boarder in their cluttered Midwest home, their lives are unsettled as unspoken passions rise to the surface. As the emptiness of their marriage is laid bare, can they find their way back to each other or will they be undone?
NEW YORK TIMES:
" Such emotional sincerity is the hallmark of this revival from the Manhattan Theater Club, directed with gentle compassion by Michael Pressman and featuring first-rate performances from Kevin Anderson and Zoe Kazan. The production’s commitment to its characters uncovers surprising virtues in William Inge’s play, his first New York success."
Read the whole review HERE.
NEW YORK POST:
"Just why Manhattan Theater Club wanted to bring this creakingly dated play back to Broadway is perhaps explained by Merkerson's wish to appear in it. Or perhaps the company wondered if Inge - once oddly regarded as virtually the equal of Tennessee Williams and Arthur Miller - was due a resuscitation attempt. He isn't. He's a playwright who got lucky and meshed quite neatly with the general feel of his period, although he in no way examined it."
Read the whole review HERE.
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS:
"In 1950, Inge's breakthrough drama was lauded for gritty realism and heralded his works "Picnic" and "Bus Stop." At the Biltmore Theatre, where the play opened last night in its first Broadway revival, "Sheba" is an old-fashioned but still-engaging portrait of a strained marriage."
Read the whole review HERE.
NEW YORK SUN:
"But for every little thing he gets wrong, Mr. Pressman gets the play's freighted, sputtering romance right. With a minimum of fuss, he has mounted a well-made production of a well-made play about primarily well-made men and women — a stage genre that has been AWOL nearly as long as Little Sheba, Lola's beloved (and metaphorically overworked) little dog. But sometimes they come back after all, looking a little musty but welcome all the same. It's enough to bring a smile to one's face."
Read the whole review HERE.
THEATERMANIA:
"True, even in a perfect production, not every member of a 2008 New York audience would relate to the story of an unhappily codependent Midwestern housewife in 1950 -- perhaps one reason the work has never before been revived on Broadway. But in this imperfect one, Merkerson manages to pierce the heart -- and cynicism -- of many people in the Biltmore's seats, even if they would never have believed it possible when she first stepped on stage. "
Read the whole review HERE.
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