Some Broadway stars hype themselves up with K-pop. Some opt for jazz. Jessica Chastain prefers the sound of nothing—a void before she’s thrust into the claustrophobic world of Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House. “That feels quite Nora to me,” she says, “to sit in silence.”

The Oscar winner may find that quiet is hard to come by in New York these days. For the first time since COVID-19 put live theater on an indefinite pause three years ago, venues from Broadway to Brooklyn are bursting with a pre-pandemic sort of life. There have been captivating, progressive reinventions of classics like Sweeney Todd and Death of a Salesman, and bold new productions like Kimberly Akimbo and Ain’t No Mo’. There have been downtown sensations—comedian Kate Berlant, turning the one-woman show on its ear—and Midtown miracle workers like Lea Michele, Funny Girl’s greatest star. There’s been a Cinderella who’s good (Phillipa Soo in Into the Woods) and a Cinderella who’s not so good (Linedy Genao in Bad Cinderella).

Ibsen’s masterpiece famously ends with the sound of a door slamming. But these 20 buzzy performers are open and ready to be back in business. “If you take the walls off a theater, you would think it’s a madhouse,” says Corey Hawkins, who smolders opposite Yahya Abdul-Mateen II in Topdog/Underdog. “You would think you’re looking into a psych ward. I mean, you are. But it’s all for the love of the craft.” —Hillary Busis

JESSICA CHASTAIN / A DOLL’S HOUSE

“At Juilliard, Andrei Belgrader told me, ‘A great thing to do right before you go onstage—even if you don’t believe it—is to stick your arms out in the air and go, I’m a genius. Then walk onstage. Because it’ll create that energy within you.’ ” – Source

April 2, 2023   Claudia

Academy Award winner Jessica Chastain is ready to take a big bite out of a juicy role at Apple TV+.

Fresh off her co-leading role in Showtime’s George & Tammy, Chastain has signed on to headline and serve as an executive producer on The Savant, Apple TV+ announced on Monday.

Although “storyline and character details are being kept under wraps” (per Apple TV+), the eight-episode limited series is inspired by a true story written by Andrea Stanley and published in Cosmopolitan. The lead for that August 2019 Cosmo story reads, “You’ve never heard of her, but somewhere in America, a top secret investigator known as the Savant is infiltrating online hate groups to take down the most violent men in the country.”

Melissa James Gibson (Anatomy of Scandal, House of Cards) will serve as showrunner on the series and exec-produce alongside director Matthew Heineman, Chastain, Kelly Carmichael, Cosmopolitan editor-in-chief Jessica Giles and Hearst Magazines’ Brian Madden. Andrea Stanley will consult.

Chastain is known for her work in movies such as The Eyes of Tammy Faye (for which she won her Oscar), The Good Nurse, Zero Dark Thirty and Interstellar, while her early- to mid-2000s TV roles included guest spots on Veronica Mars, Law & Order: Trial by Jury, Close to Home, ‘Til Death and others

Last year in Showtime’s aforementioned Tammy & George mini, she played Tammy Wynette to Michael Shannon’s George Jones, a role for which she won a SAG Award and netted a Golden Globe nomination.

Chastain currently leads Broadway’s revival of the 1879 Henrik Ibson play A Doll’s House, where she plays Nora Helmer, a housewife who challenges traditional gender roles, opposite Succession’s Arian Moayed, who plays Nora’s husband, Torvald.

March 27, 2023   Claudia

The Oscar winner’s latest triumph is her portrayal of Nora Helmer in ‘A Doll’s House,’ which almost didn’t happen.

NEW YORK — Jessica Chastain hadn’t been in a play in so long that the thought of it filled her with dread. “It was just crazy because I started in theater,” said the Juilliard graduate, now 45, and a mom, and an Oscar winner and at that point in a career when an actor can call her own shots.

So a supportive friend, James McAvoy, who toggles between stage and screen, connected her with British director Jamie Lloyd. He, like Chastain, has his own production company, except his is geared toward plays and hers, Freckle Films, makes movies, like “The Eyes of Tammy Faye,” the picture that won her a 2022 Academy Award. “He goes, ‘Why aren’t you doing any theater?’” she said of Lloyd. “And I’m like, ‘Oh, I’m just very scared.’”

The admission was an icebreaker, because it commenced a discussion about what stage project they might attempt to bring her back, a spitballing that began with “The Duchess of Malfi” and “Summer and Smoke” in London, and eventually settled on “A Doll’s House” on Broadway. The confidence and trust that developed between them calmed Chastain’s nerves — and led to an assured, austere revival of Ibsen’s 1879 play, a recently opened production that is a hit with critics and poised for commercial success.

“I just felt so inspired about the way that he sees the world,” Chastain observed about Lloyd, as she sat sipping water recently at Freckle Films’s office in Chelsea. As Lloyd recalled, it was Chastain who suggested “A Doll’s House.” Lloyd said he looked at many versions before commissioning playwright Amy Herzog to write a new one that he would stage with virtually no embellishments — just actors in dark colors, and chairs on a revolving set.

“When it’s just actors in space, the connection between them in space, you see things from a different point of view,” the director said by phone. “You literally see them from a different perspective.”

Whatever allayed Chastain’s trepidation, it was a boon for Broadway, paving the way for a buzzworthy star turn in a season sorely in need of them. Chastain’s only previous Broadway role was a decade ago, in a revival of “The Heiress.”

Read the full article/interview in our press library.

March 18, 2023   Claudia

Celebrity stylist Elizabeth Stewart talks to BAZAAR.com about last night’s showstopping look.

After winning the Academy Award for Best Actress at last year’s ceremony, Jessica Chastain returned to the Oscars stage at Los Angeles’s Dolby Theatre last night. So, how exactly does an Academy Award winner dress? In head-to-toe Gucci, of course.

“[Gucci] has an uncanny way of capturing her spirit with their designs,” Elizabeth Stewart, Chastain’s stylist, tells BAZAAR.com

The star—who won her first Oscar for her starring role in The Eyes of Tammy Faye—attended the 95th annual Academy Awards last night as one of the evening’s A-list presenters. She joined Halle Berry in handing off the gold statuette for Best Actress to Michelle Yeoh.

For the historic occasion, Chastain and Stewart teamed up with the Italian fashion house to deliver a timeless red-carpet look. This included a strapless gown completely embellished with glimmering silver crystals and sequins. The dress also included a plunging deep V-neckline, black trim details at the bustier, and an attached black train.

“The dress is sleek and minimalist and iconic and glamorous all at the same time. It captures Jessica’s vibe on a sartorial and practical level,” Stewart explains. “She is currently on Broadway, and we needed a dress she would love and would fit impeccably, with very minimal fitting time.”

The true centerpiece of the outfit, however, was the 18-carat white gold sparkler that hung around Chastain’s neck, courtesy of Gucci High Jewelry. The Lionhead necklace displayed a dazzling 80 carats’ worth of tsavorites and diamonds. (As the face of the luxe designer jewelry brand, we’d expect nothing less from Chastain!)

The entire ensemble, coupled with her dramatic glam and soft wavy hairdo, provided a much-appreciated modern take on Old Hollywood glamour.

During this past awards circuit, Chastain made multiple notable appearances while relying on Gucci High Jewelry to make a statement.

At the Screen Actor Guild Awards, she amped up the glamour in a hot pink Zuhair Murad gown paired with chandelier earrings by Gucci. And at the Golden Globes, she styled her crystal web Oscar de la Renta dress with an array of glittering Gucci rings.

Source

March 15, 2023   Claudia

Jessica Chastain is a vision. Gorgeous and classy. She wore again a Gucci dress with bold accents of black and a wonderful green necklace to complete the outfit.
Enjoy the over 100 HQ photos I’ve added to the gallery and hopefully more will come later.

March 13, 2023   Claudia

HQ Photos of Jessica Chastain during last night’s event of A Doll’s House have been added to the gallery. Enjoy!

March 10, 2023   Claudia