Shadowlands Tickets

About Shadowlands

The play depicts the unlikely but happy romance between C.S Lewis and Joy Davidman. Lewis, a self-proclaimed bachelor had his life turned around when the recently divorced Joy entered it (after sailing across the Atlantic). Poles apart in every way, the Englishman and New Yorker found common ground in their love, artistic talent and humor and lived a happy life together in Britain. The play also depicts how their love stands the ultimate test when Joy is diagnosed with cancer right up till her death. The play is funny and intelligent, building on humorous cultural exchanges and banter between its two leads. It displays the vigor of faith and grief in a beautiful manner.

The Various Forms of Shadowlands

Although the play was originally written for the stage, it has been released as a book (script for the play), TV series as well as feature film. The TV series has starred acclaimed Hollywood legend Anthony Hopkins as Lewis and gained him various accolades for the role. Perhaps the reason why this story has kept on appearing in various forms is the fact that its characters are famous personalities who have hidden behind their work, and this story is one of the few ways to see into the person behind the books and poetry. Joy Davidson, in particular, was a particularly overlooked figure in history, only recognized as Lewis’ wife who “wrote as well”. However, the play gives her narrative relevance as well as depth, which would otherwise be missing in modern popular culture.

The Who the What the When

“Shadowlands” was first penned by William Nicholson in 1989. Its debut performance was at the Queen’s Theatre in London which garnered its lead actress Jane Lapotaire with an Olivier Award nomination. The play went next to Broadway; in November 1990 it played at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre in New York and ran for a year. The production received two TONY nominations while Nigel Hawthorne won the best actor TONY.

The play has since been revived in theaters twice; once in 2007 and now in 2017. The 2007 production was directed by Michael Barker-Caven and starred Charles Dance as Lewis and Janie Dee as Joy. This production ran in the Wyndham Theatre and then Novello Theatre.

Shadowlands at the Acorn

The play was given its 2017 reboot by the Fellowship of Performing Arts in New York and is directed by Christa Scott-Reed. Despite the known tragic history of the play’s protagonists, Reed has been able to keep the tone of the play comedic, often cashing in on the absurdities of sexism and cultural clashes when Joy enters Lewis’ social circle. It is charming and heartbreaking, a love story that defies all norms only to end up in an untimely and abrupt ending.

Character development is another prominent area n this play, as it explores Lewis’ otherwise mysterious personality and gives his character a vulnerability lacking in the actual historical evidence of the famed author. This play has charmed generations of theater-goers and is continuing to do so for the rest of 2017 at the Acorn Theatre. Shadowlands tickets are some of the hottest sell-outs in New York theaters and you should get your hands on some soon.