The appeal of New York City is its spectacle. Between the lights of Times Square, the lights that shine just as bright and all the way down 42nd Street are the theaters and playhouses of Broadway. With rich revivals and debuts such as “Moulin Rouge,” which debut in summer 2019, the opportunities of Broadway are not only the community that it creates, but also the international draw to each of  its shows.

On March 12, 2020, Broadway announced after many of its weekday evening shows that it would go dark until April 12. What we now know was wishful thinking, this halted the careers and income of many actors, especially international actors that uprooted their entire lives for a chance to add Broadway to their résumé and even possibly migrate to the West End in London. Whereas, many shows had to abruptly end, some were fortunate enough to wrap up their productions before COVID-19 took its hold, one of these shows being Harold Pinter’s, “Betrayal,” directed by Jamie Lloyd.

What had originated in the Harold Pinter Theatre on the West End, “Betrayal,” is one of the British playwright’s best-known plays. With several productions internationally, and two preceding the 2019 revival in London and New York, the show ran in London from its opening night on March 13, 2019 through June 8, 2019. Shortly after its end in June, it was announced that Sept. 5, 2019, would mark its premiere on Broadway since its last revival in New York in 2013 starring Daniel Craig (“Knives Out”).

“Betrayal,” although quite a short and bare-boned script, is an abrupt and unique analysis of the complications of the human relationships between both lovers and friends. Straight from the Broadway website for the production, “ … ‘Betrayal’ is the story of an illicit affair that unfolds in reverse — from the end of a marriage to the first forbidden spark. Starring Golden Globe and Olivier Award winner Tom Hiddleston (“The Avengers”), Zawe Ashton (“Velvet Buzzsaw”) and Charlie Cox (“Daredevil”), this stunning production features the daring vision of one of the U.K.’s most acclaimed directors.” 

Pinter, the playwright, has the play take place in both London and Venice between the years of 1968 to 1977.

With a star-studded cast and loyal fans from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, between the likes of Hiddleston playing a fan favorite of Loki in The Avengers franchise, as well as Cox playing the role of Daredevil on the Netflix Original Series., the play was bound to have a mass following. With an experienced cast both on stage and on screen, the announcement of “Betrayal” had many thrilled. It just so happens that Ashton, the lead female in the production, has also alluded to accepting a role within the MCU, possibly taking on the antagonist role opposite Brie Larson (“Kong: Skull Island”) in “Captain Marvel 2” intended for theaters November 2022. By taking diverse actors with loyal fanbases, the insanity that surrounded “Betrayal” was unlike any other, especially for a show transitioning from the West End to Broadway with each British actor making their Broadway debut.

Now nominated for four Tony Awards, the show ended its run in the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre on Dec. 8, 2019. With nominations for Best Revival of a Play, Hiddleston for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play, Lloyd for Best Direction of a Play and Soutra Gilmour for Best Scenic Design of a Play, and rthe cast and crew received raving reviews for the production. The 74th Annual Tony Awards have been postponed since March 25, 2020, following the close of Broadway, leaving each of the nominations pending. The production had also received nominations from the Drama League Award for Outstanding Revival of a Play as well as Distinguished Performance for Hiddleston. The last of the 2020 nominations came as honorees from the Outer Critics Circle award for Outstanding Revival of a Play, Lloyd for Outstanding Director of a Play and Hiddleston for Outstanding Actor in a Play.

To celebrate the nominations and generate interest back within the theater community, The Jamie Lloyd Company announced to its 21.7 thousand followers on Instagram that it would hold a virtual reunion on Feb. 28. The Instagram livestream, which was initially intended to last only an hour, lasted nearly two hours and fifteen minutes.

Commencing the stream with director Lloyd in the reigns, the stream started from his account where, then the set designer, Gilmour. Each actor joined the livestream individually from the “Broadway“ Instagram account. Starting with Gilmour, they discussed her Tony nomination, and why exactly she chose such a peculiar way to design the stage.

With a minimalist approach to the stage design,  which differed drastically from the dramatic and eye-catching stages seen in musical productions such as “The Phantom of the Opera,” “Betrayal’s” approach to its set held true not only to the playwright’s style in writing as being minimalist, but also to the nature of the play as having a focus on emotion and character rather than a on spectacle. As a production that is driven high in emotion and everything that is left unsaid, leaving a stage that focused heavily on shadow and few props kept the focus where it was intended, with the story of the characters. 

In the center of the stage is a large circle which is nearly unnoticeable by any viewer in the front rows. For those with balcony seating, one can see the clock-like shape and how the circle quite literally moves on stage, rotating the characters to different places on the stage as they progress further back in time and the play carries on. 

Although viewers can see the actors and props moving on this singular chunk of the stage, the counterclockwise motion is easily recognizable by those that are in the balcony compared to those who are seated in the floor seating and will not realize that the play is going in reverse order until the next scene commences with a projector simply displaying a change in date on the back wall of the stage.

Gilmour’s approach to the set and its limited number of props is a well-decided and calculated choice that only enhances the experience of seeing the show. As one that has seen the production on both the West End and on Broadway, there is so much embedded in her stylistic choices for the set.

Lloyd then brings in Eddie Arnold, who plays the waiter in his production of the play. They discussed the turn his life took after “Betrayal” as well as adjusting to his time spent in New York City while the show was on Broadway. Arnold’s role provided comic relief in the play, as the waiter on stage with Robert (Hiddleston) and Jerry (Cox) as they have a very tense dinner and discuss everything except the fact that Jerry is sleeping with Robert’s wife, Emma. His time in the livestream led to entertaining and lighthearted banter between the director and actor before Cox joined the stream. 

In the brief moments where Lloyd waited for each actor to join the livestream, he stressed the importance of supporting live theater and informing the audience on just how many people go into both the production of an international production to even just a simple livestream on Instagram, with many of the actors streaming for the first time, such as Cox, who had difficulty joining the stream. It was enjoyable watching the two connect, catch up and reminisce on how intimate a stage production can be compared to how live performances on stage aren’t even happening. Between working with Lloyd on another Pinter play “The Lover/The Collector” a decade prior and working with Hiddleston and being friends with him as well, the play was a great experience to reconnect and grow closer with the connections they made in the West End.

Ashton’s livestream appearance was a highly anticipated and informative one. As a humorous and intuitive individual, especially as the leading female role in the production that had well over 200 shows, Ashton had wonderful things to say regarding the difference in cultural responses due to the Jamie Lloyd Company’s production in both London and New York.

Pinter was able to incorporate a humor tailored to a British audience. With many of the subtle jabs and insults veiled in comedy, most of the American audiences took away a whole different experience compared to their British counterparts. Noticed by viewers that had seen both productions as well as the actors, Ashton’s reflection on how particular tense moments between Emma and Jerry were interpreted as simply lovers quarreling, when in reality, they were touching at something all the graver. Due to the cultural differences of the audiences, the great receival of the play was actually quite surprising due to its subject matter and witty play on words.

The livestream concluded with Hiddleston, who reflected on his relationship with the play and in the role of Robert since the first reading of the script between him and Ashton at a charity gala in Pinter’s honor and just how emotionally demanding such an intense role could be. With having to cry on demand eight times a week, each of the actors discussed how they had to find something to keep them grounded and not get completely lost in the emotional turmoil and baggage that each of their characters carry throughout the hour and thirty-minute run.

With over 5,000 people tuned in for the reunion, many were excited and discussed the MCU in the comments, particularly the “Loki” series which is set to air on Disney+ starting May 21, that will star Hiddleston. Although he did not discuss his MCU character much, his reflection upon Robert and his time in “Betrayal” as well as discussing his Tony nomination was greatly enjoyed.

Perhaps one of the most impactful statements made by Lloyd throughout the entire stream was “It’s just been a great time to reminisce about the whole thing, and as [Ashton says,] think about what is so special. I keep thinking about the power of live performance to sort of help us understand the kind of complexity of our fragile and complicated lives.”

As something to remember, not only with the popular productions of theater and the shows that make it on Broadway, but also smaller productions such as community theater and even school productions, theater is a driving force for the cinema and television that is prominent today, with many actors getting their start on stage.

With a recent announcement from March 16 sharing the positive news of the return of New York City’s Shakespeare in the Park this summer after having to cease the 60-year tradition this past summer due to the pandemic, many hope that this revival in appreciation for theater through both social media and within the classics of Shakespeare will mean that despite a global pandemic, that Broadway’s will eventually relight and live performance and theater will prevail and continue on.

Image from The Jamie Lloyd Company via YouTube