BWW TV: Watch Larry Kramer Talk About His Masterpiece, THE NORMAL HEART, on Opening Night

By: May. 28, 2020
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As BroadwayWorld sadly reported yesterday, legendary playwright, author, and activist, Larry Kramer passed away this morning. With his passing, Kramer leaves behind a legacy of important, eye-opening, controversial art, including his masterpiece, The Normal Heart.

The play, which first opened The Public Theater in 1985, focuses on the rise of the HIV/AIDS crisis in New York City between 1981 and 1984, as seen through the eyes of writer/activist Ned Weeks, the gay founder of a prominent HIV advocacy group. The play made it to Broadway in 2011 in a star-studded production featuring Joe Mantello, John Benjamin Hickey, Lee Pace, Jim Parsons and Ellen Barkin. It earned five Tony nominations that season and two wins, including Best Revival of a Play.

Below, watch as Kramer talks about the play, how it effects audiences, and why he sometimes forgets that he even wrote it on opening night in 2011.



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