The Hills of California will open on September 29, 2024.
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Spoiler alert: The Hills of California does not in fact take place in the hills of California. The company of Jez Butterworth‘s play is now in previews, but before they reached the Broadhurst Theatre, they met the press to discuss where and when the exciting new play does take place.
“It has gotten to the point where if Jez wrote a version of the phone book, I would say, ‘Ok, I’ll do that!’ He is one of the two or three greatest playwrights alive, I think,” said director Sam Mendes. “He was stretching the limits theatrically for him. Until now, all of his plays have taken place in one location and time period. Suddenly he was writing in two time periods. He was also stretching in other ways… there’s music and dancing in this play! There is a level of theatricality that is very exciting for those of us who follow his work.”
The play takes place in the sweltering heat of a 1970s summer, when the Webb sisters return to their childhood home in Blackpool, an English seaside town, where their mother Veronica lies dying upstairs. Gloria and Ruby now have families of their own. Jill never left. And Joan? No one’s heard from her in twenty years… but Jill insists that their mother’s favorite won’t let them down this time.
The run-down Sea View Guest House is haunted by bittersweet memories of amusement park rides and overdue bills. Back in the 1950s, each night the four young sisters rehearse their singing act, managed by their fiercely loving single mom. But when a record producer offers a shot at fame and a chance to escape, it will cost them all dearly.
“[The Hills of California] is a sister/brother/cousin of my other plays. If you like them, come along! It’s big; it’s three acts,” added Butterworth. “It’s an old-fashioned kind of play. I’m from the 20th century. I was sort of out-of-fashion, and now it’s my unique selling point! But this is how I sound and what I do. I don’t think it’s gonna change. I like big stories where you sit there and three hours later, you can’t believe that you’ve been there for all of that time.”
In this video, watch as the entire cast and creative team chats more about what audiences can expect.
