Sam doesn’t get out much. Actually, he doesn’t get out at all, opting instead for the safety of his house in the company of his things—his many, many things. But when a notice from the government arrives alerting Sam that he must clean up his property or face eviction, he’s forced to reckon with what’s trash, what’s treasure, and whether we can ever know the difference between the two.
Danny DeVito returns to Roundabout Theatre Company in I Need That, starring alongside his daughter, Lucy DeVito, and Ray Anthony Thomas in a deeply human new comedy from playwright Theresa Rebeck and director Moritz von Stuelpnagel, the team behind Bernhardt/Hamlet.
In Theresa Rebeck’s I Need That — which makes its 100-minute run time feel as stretched out as the waistband of an old pair of sweatpants — Danny DeVito is Character B, or Sam. His daughter, Lucy DeVito, is also his daughter onstage, a.k.a. Character A, or Amelia. Sam, a big fan of old sweatpants, isn’t quite a hoarder, but he’s close. He doesn’t go outside, his house is bursting with heaps and heaps of “junk” (according to Amelia) or “treasure” (according to him), and it’s bad enough that the neighbors have called the authorities. “The fire department is coming,” says Amelia anxiously, as she says everything, “and they’re going to condemn the place and tell the health department to throw you out if you don’t do something.” A says, “Clean up!” B says, “No!” In the words of Mortal Kombat: “Fight.”
Sure, there are actors so good you would pay to see them read the phone book. But how many are there that you would pay to watch them play a board game? Off hand, I can think of only one: Danny DeVito, who turns a solo game of Sorry into the comic highlight of Theresa Rebeck’s new play I Need That, now receiving its world premiere on Broadway courtesy of the Roundabout Theater Company.
Digital Rush
Price: $48
Where: on the TodayTix app.
When: 9am on the day of the performance
Limit: Two per customer
Information: Subject to availability.
2023 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2024 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance | Danny DeVito |
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