Red at Playhouse, QPAC

In the 1950s, Rothko took a commission that would set him up for life. He was showered with money by Manhattan’s elite in return for a series of paintings that would decorate the swanky Four Seasons Restaurant in the brand new, soaring, steel-and-glass monument to corporate modernism, the Seagram Building on Park Avenue.

Rothko forged his art into a weapon against the richest bastards in New York, vowing clandestinely to create stomach-turning crimson canvases that would “ruin the appetite of every son-of-a-bitch who eats there” – but in 1959, out of the blue, he stormily reclaimed the paintings and gave back the money. The catalyst of that event went with the abstract expressionist to his grave. It’s this mystery that is explored with stunning intensity in Red, along with the relationship between master and protégé, art and commerce, artist and audience. From the pen of John Logan – acclaimed screenwriter of Gladiator, The Aviator, Hugo and forthcoming James Bond film Skyfall this six-time Tony Award winner is a true masterpiece.

Authors

• Chay Yew
• John Logan
• Michael Bodeen
• Rob Milburn