Orson’s Shadow

Austin Pendleton’s Orson’s Shadow is an ingenious tale of two Hollywood giants –
Orson Wells and Laurence Olivier. The time is 1960; the place is a West End theatre.
Legendary critic Kenneth Tynan has made a startling proposal: Wells should direct
Olivier and the young Joan Plowright in Rhinoceros, Ionesco’s absurdist masterpiece.

But it is the rehearsal process that brims with absurdity as titanic personalities, including
Vivien Leigh, wrestle the muse. Based on an actual event, Orson’s Shadow is a
witty and incisive depiction of the drama of theatre.