In conjunction with an exhibition of her photographic work at Eastman House, the Dryden Theatre welcomes two-time Academy Award®-winning actress Jessica Lange in person on Saturday, July 25.
A former model, Lange made an inauspicious debut on film when she stood-in for Fay Wray in the much-hyped, now forgotten 1976 remake of King Kong. Looking to do more challenging work with serious artists, Lange first impressed her critics in 1981 with her performance as Cora, the neglected wife of a roadside diner owner who falls into a passionate but deadly affair with a drifter (Jack Nicholson) in Bob Rafelson’s remake of The Postman Always Rings Twice (screening July 2). The very next year was a watershed one for Lange, as she earned two Academy Award® nominations and won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar® for her deft, charming turn as Dustin Hoffman’s best friend and love interest in Tootsie (July 9).
Since the early ’80s, Lange has maintained her reputation as a performer with integrity and ethics. Frequently, the subjects of her films are directly related to issues in the national, or international, discourse, such as the legacy of the Holocaust, in Costa-Gavras’ Music Box (July 16). The importance of such projects, however, is never overpowering enough to stifle the often subtle and very real emotions that she is capable of delivering. Tony Richardson’s period drama Blue Sky (July 23) provided the role that earned Lange her second Oscar®, this time for Best Actress. Set against the backdrop of the US arms race buildup in the 1960s, Blue Sky also serves as another vehicle for Lange’s masterful, compelling technique as a performer.
Continuing to work with the most talented and visionary of filmmakers and fellow actors into the 21st century, Lange made a tantalizing villainess as Tamora, Queen of the Goths in acclaimed stage director Julie Taymor’s first feature, Titus (July 30), an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus. Her most recent leading role found her as “Big Edie” Beale, mother to Drew Barrymore’s “Little Edie” in the first filmed dramatization of the legendarily creepy documentary, Grey Gardens.
In two separate ticketed events on July 25, Lange will personally introduce a screening of Grey Gardens at 5 p.m. Then, at 8 p.m., join us for “An Evening with Jessica Lange,” which will include a clip presentation of her motion picture work, as well as a guided tour through her bold and visually captivating still photographs (which have been published in the volume 50 Photographs), a discussion of her artistic career, and a booksigning. See inside for ticket information.
50 Photographs by Jessica Lange and Jessica Lange Thursdays are made possible by Woods Oviatt Gilman LLP and First Niagara Financial Group.
