Broadway's biggest fall revival

Lily Rabe returns to Broadway on September 29 at the Hudson Theatre in 'Other Desert Cities,' a 2011 play about a writer whose memoir exposes her family's dark secrets. The cast includes Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Ed Harris, Allison Janney and Joe Keery.

Rabe plays a writer detonating secrets

Rabe portrays Brooke, a troubled writer whose published memoir unearths long-buried dark history in the politically conservative Wyeth family of Palm Springs, California. The play opens officially on October 18.

Star power directed by John Benjamin Hickey

Director John Benjamin Hickey helms this revival of Jon Robin Baitz's 2011 play, bringing together one of Broadway's most impressive casts. The collective star power makes this production a major theatrical event.

Rabe's first read-through with the cast

Rabe sat down for her first read-through with the cast on August 25, after wrapping her run in 'The Winter's Tale' at the Public Theater's Shakespeare in the Park on August 23. She had already met the ensemble at an earlier photo shoot.

“I'm in love with all of them”

Working with Harris and Louis-Dreyfus

Rabe has worked with Ed Harris before, but this marks her first collaboration with Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Allison Janney and Joe Keery. In June at the Tony Awards, she presented Best Play honors alongside Louis-Dreyfus.

“I'll watch her in anything. I wish she were our president”

Rabe's creative family legacy

Rabe is the daughter of Oscar-nominated actress Jill Clayburgh and Tony-winning playwright David Rabe. Her mother died in November 2010, and her father is now 86. Creativity runs deep in her DNA.

Her mother's influence on style

Rabe's mother had a striking sense of style and great clothes. Growing up, Rabe remembers running around in costumes from Bertolucci movies and always loved dressing up, a passion that continues into her adult life.

“She had great clothes, and she looked beautiful in them”

Back in New York full time

After 12 years based in Los Angeles or bicoastal, Rabe has moved back to Manhattan full time with longtime partner Hamish Linklater and their four children, ages 4, 6, 9 and 19. She calls New York her favorite city in the world.

“It's my favorite city in the world”

A long absence from Broadway

It's been 11 years since Rabe's last appearance at the Delacorte Theater and 14 years since her last Broadway show, 'Seminar.' At the opening night celebration for 'The Winter's Tale,' Linklater gave her a note saying 'Happy homecoming.'

“Happy homecoming”

Meeting Linklater through her mother

Rabe met Hamish Linklater in 2006 through her mother, when he and Jill Clayburgh acted in an off-Broadway play. Two decades later, they're a family of six and frequently co-star together in projects.

Parenting four kids as a working couple

Rabe and Linklater parent three young children together plus a college student from his previous relationship. They describe themselves as 'super scrappy' about managing family life while both working, and they're not parents who avoid saying no.

“We're super scrappy about it”

Her breakout role opposite Al Pacino

In 2010, director Daniel Sullivan cast Rabe as Portia opposite Al Pacino in 'The Merchant of Venice,' with Linklater as her love interest. The show earned strong reviews in Central Park, transferred to Broadway and earned her a Tony nomination for Best Actress.

American Horror Story and beyond

Rabe has worked extensively in television and film, including Ryan Murphy's 'American Horror Story' alongside Jessica Lange and Kathy Bates. Her characters have included ghosts, a witch and aviator Amelia Earhart. Her newest film is 'Capsized,' a comedy-drama with Rhys Ifans.

“It was a tremendous gift in my life”

Mysteries closest to us

Rabe appreciates 'Other Desert Cities' for its exploration of how our nearest and dearest can be the hardest puzzles to crack. She finds the idea that our greatest life mysteries come from our families to be harrowing, compelling and exhilarating.

“Often the greatest mysteries of our life are from what's closest to us, and that's our families”

Deep connection with her castmates

A week into rehearsals, Rabe reports feeling a deep sense of connection with every member of her cast in ways she can't fully explain. She says you don't really want to explain it, you just feel it.

“I feel it with every single one of them in ways I can't explain”