Fish gotta swim, birds gotta fly, but some It girls should stick to acting in front of a camera. That’s not exactly how the song goes, but it might be my new motto after hearing that Katie Holmes (Dawson’s Creek, Batman Begins) has been cast in next season’s revival of Arthur Miller’s 1947 play All My Sons; she’ll be starring alongside the legendary John Lithgow, Dianne Wiest, and Patrick Wilson. Sure, all three of the aforementioned actors have excelled in roles both on-screen and onstage, but I’m just not convinced Holmes has the same aptitude for both mediums (and have we even seen said aptitude on-screen yet?). I’m not one to care about celebrities and their professional pursuits, but I do care about the integrity of live theatre, and I know a whole lot of actresses with the chops to play Holmes’s role in All My Sons who would kill for the chance to do so.
I completely understand why producers like to cast “names” in their shows; it definitely helps sell tickets. But let’s be honest — a Katie Holmes fan is probably not an Arthur Miller fan (we can compare and contrast The Crucible and Dawson’s Creek in another post). A New York theatergoer who purposely buys a ticket to All My Sons to see Katie Holmes would probably be much happier at a performance of, let’s say, Mamma Mia!
