Theater News

Glenn Close to Reprise Tony-Winning Role in Sunset Boulevard

Broadway’s original Norma Desmond is ready for another close-up.

Glenn Close will reprise her performance as Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard.
Glenn Close will reprise her performance as Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard.

Three-time Tony Award-winning actress Glenn Close will reprise her iconic performance as Norma Desmond in a limited-engagement production of Sunset Boulevard at English National Opera. Performances will run from April 1-May 7, 2016, with an official April 4 opening at the London Coliseum. Directed by Lonny Price, the semi-staged production will feature the full ENO orchestra. Additional casting will be announced at a later date.

Close originated the role of Norma Desmond on Broadway in 1995 to Tony-winning acclaim. She has also earned Tony Awards for her performances in The Real Thing and Death and the Maiden. She was most recently seen on Broadway in the 2014 revival of Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance.

Based on the classic 1950 film of the same title, the Sunset Boulevard follows Desmond, a washed-up silent film star, who lives in a dilapidated mansion on Sunset Boulevard. When she encounters a young screenwriter named Joe Gillis, she sees him as her opportunity to make a comeback to the silver screen. The musical features a Tony Award-winning score by Andrew Lloyd Webber, and a Tony Award-winning book and lyrics by Don Black and Christopher Hampton.