We love Patton Oswalt over here, and were looking forward to his Broadway debut in Terrence McNally’s affecting Fire Island comedy Lips Together, Teeth Apart. Oswalt had already proven his acting ability on film with his performance in Big Fan, and we had no doubt that, like most talented comedians, he'd bring something special to more diverse roles. But Megan Mullally, his co-star in Lips Together, Teeth Apart, wasn't convinced, and after she failed to persuade esteemed director Joe Mantello to fire Oswalt, she quit. DRAMA!
The production has now been indefinitely postponed because Mullally, who won Emmys as Karen on Will & Grace, quit so close to the start of previews, which were to begin April 9th. What happened to "the show must go on"? Isn't this what understudies are for? The postponement/cancellation makes one wonder if perhaps there was some truth to Mullally's criticism, but it may also be that the Roundabout Theater Company, reeling from the Bye Bye Birdie flop, is now too risk-averse to proceed without a name star. (Roundabout also has financial troubles, according to The Times.)
Sources tell the Times that "not long after rehearsals began, on March 9, Mullally became concerned that Mr. Oswalt was having difficulty with his nuanced role, that of her unsophisticated, homophobic brother—a part for which Nathan Lane drew critical praise in the original Off Broadway production." She reportedly appealed to Mantello privately on several occasions, explaining that her anxiety was heightened because her last Broadway turn, Young Frankenstein bombed, and her mother is sick. It's unclear what role sushi played in her quitting.
