August is often a time for theatrical hibernation, but not in London. This summer finds the capital busier than ever, as it plays host to Oscar, Tony and Olivier Award winners across a range of enticing titles—some familiar, others brand new. For more on this late-summer superabundance, read on.
Isabella Ford and Christine Lahti in London’s “The Smile of Her” (Photo: Mark Senior)
Ready, Set, Smile
Oscar and Emmy winner Christine Lahti (Swing Shift, Running on Empty) has been a regular presence off-Broadway and on but is only just now making her London stage debut, at the Marylebone Theatre through August 29 with her self-penned play, The Smile of Her. (The autobiographical piece premiered at the Berkshire Theatre Group in Massachusetts in 2023.) “I’m not sensing a difference here,” the immediately warm actress told Broadway.com with regard to British audiences as opposed to American ones: “Women come up to me and say, ‘I feel seen’ and that to me is everything; my work is done.” And at age 76, she was quick to voice the appeal of the stage at this time in her life. In movies, she said, “ageism is still rearing its ugly head, …