Richard Nelson had thought he was finished with the Apple family. By September 2020, the playwright had spent a decade writing four in-person plays and three pandemic-era virtual installments about the politically attuned family from Rhinebeck. But after Donald Trump was elected to a second term, Nelson wanted to hear from the Apples again.
When Oskar Eustis, artistic director of Manhattan's Public Theater, which had produced the earlier Apple family plays, asked Nelson last summer whether he had a new play, Nelson suggested bringing the family back. Nelson said Eustis agreed right away.
Nelson, 76, spoke at the Public in late September, a day before rehearsals were scheduled to begin for the new play, "We'll See." Set on the night of the 2026 midterm elections, the play is slated to open this Election Day, Nov. 3.
Nelson described the cast as being like a family reunion. Four of the five actors are reprising their roles from previous installments, including Jay O. Sanders, 73, and Maryann Plunkett, 73, who are married and play siblings.
Sources: The New York Times Politics.