By Denny Patterson

Suddenly, Last Summer is without question one of Tennessee Williams’ most memorable works, and Island City Stage is proud to present this timeless classic March 17 – April 17, 2022. 

Directed by Andy Rogow, audiences are invited to join Mrs. Violet Venable and her niece Catherine on a hot, steamy afternoon while they battle in a war that will cement the legacy of Violet’s son, Sebastian. Was he a brilliant artist and a devoted child, or a sexual predator? Evoking themes of aging and beauty, hypocrisy, greed, sexual orientation, and even cannibalism, Williams himself consided this piece to be his most poetic. 

Originally scheduled for Island City Stage’s 2020 season, the COVID-19 pandemic brought Suddenly, Last Summer to a halt, like millions of other live theatre performances. South Florida actress Angie Radosh, who plays Violet, is excited to finally move forward with the show. 

“Andy asked me to do this role over three years ago, and we were in our first week of rehearsals when COVID closed everything,” she explains. “It has been a glorious week exploring and delving into this incredible theatrical text. To have it put on hold for weeks seemed possible, and we all thought that’s what it would be, but those weeks turned into months and years. The anticipation of going back into rehearsal and actually performing this play, I cannot begin to express how excited, thrilled, and joyous I am. I am grateful that Andy waited! I look forward to reuniting with previous cast members and getting to meet the new cast members as we tackle this challenging work.”

Jeanine Levy, who plays Catherine, agrees. She was cast around the same time as Radosh.

“I have renamed the play Suddenly, Two Summers From Now,” she jokes. “At this point, I was cast in this role nearly three years ago, and I highly anticipate seeing it through! There is so much joy in being able to finally perform again and speak Williams’ gorgeous language, but there is catharsis here for me too. I was newly pregnant when we were in rehearsals two years ago, and I tragically lost the baby days before my due date. I am not the same person I was when I started this journey. The pandemic took a toll on me, and I am so thankful I can return home to the stage. It is deeply satisfying to have the opportunity to play this incredible character who really mines the depths of trauma, and truth about all that is human. It may be a different performance than the one I would have given two years ago.”

Both seasoned thespians who have performed throughout South Florida, this is both Radosh and Levy’s first time performing in Suddenly, Last Summer. 

They hope audiences understand how much of a titan Williams was in the theater world. 

“I have always been an avid admirer of Tennessee Williams, and after doing this play, I can only add to that admiration and respect for his gift to us,” Radosh says. “He is truly our greatest American playwright. His ability to reach us and touch us as he explores protagonists that are lost souls at the mercy of an unfair and treacherous world. He lays bare the destruction that human beings bring to bear on others, whether intentionally or not, and the struggle of those artistic souls to survive man’s inhumanity.”

“He also created incredibly rich female characters who were passionate, tragic, and fragile longing to escape their own realities,” Levy adds. “I suppose this could be because Williams wrote so many plays to escape his own reality. His beloved sister Rose endured a lobotomy at his mother’s request leaving her incapacitated; perhaps why he wrote such deeply rich stories about violence, escape, loneliness, and human despair. Tennessee Williams writes beautifully about the ugliest parts of human nature, in a way that connects to our universal truth. Suddenly, Last Summer is very lyrical, but unlike most of his other popular works, you can expect elements of magical realism and a raw unveiling of the beauty and horror of humanity in unexpected ways.”