John Lithgow tour de force comes to Whitefish in July

Famed actor John Lithgow, a Flathead Valley resident, will bring nine characters and a parrot to life July 9 in his new one-man show at the O'Shaughnessy Cultural Center in Whitefish.

"I want to see how this works," Lithgow said. "I want to entertain people - that's my intent."

"A Story About a Story" evolved from Lithgow's favorite P.G. Wodehouse tale from his youth. He spun the story into a full-blown performance piece which he said he wanted to try out on an audience in the valley.

"It's quite a performance piece," he said. "It's just me acting."

To set up the show, Lithgow contacted David Ackroyd, artistic development director of the Alpine Theatre Project. He and Ackroyd became friends years ago in the business in Los Angeles and New York.

The July 9 show marks Lithgow's second appearance with the theatre. He participated with Ackroyd last summer in the first of Alpine's "An Evening With" interview series.

"Last year, we did a one-on-one conversation - kind of a Charlie Rose thing," Lithgow said. "I actually suggested this [one-man show tryout]. It's in the very early stages."

He said the idea for the performance "started percolating" several years ago. Lithgow began by memorizing the 45-minute Wodehouse story, which he termed "deliriously funny."

During long walks with his dog, the actor's creative juices flowed, giving life to the characters and weaving vignettes of his early life into the tapestry of his 90-minute one-man show.

"It's a cast of characters and it's about story telling and why story-telling is so important to us," he said.

Lithgow said he has given only one reading to an audience (in New York). He said he just read a story part. According to the actor, the Whitefish audience will experience a greatly expanded version.

Much of the evening will involve Lithgow just talking to the audience. He described it as welcoming people into the process of story-telling.

He said the performance has become much more than just a comic show.

"I'm like the third generation of storytellers," Lithgow said. "I talk about my father and grandmother. It's about my own life and stories."

He said he was first enthralled by storytelling as a child when his father read to him along with his brother and two sisters. His grandmother had a similar influence.

"When I was a little boy, she would recite long, wonderful poems," Lithgow said. "Storytelling is just part and parcel of who we are."

Tickets sold out quickly for the Whitefish performance scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. He seemed sincerely surprised that his new show generated such a quick and enthusiastic response.

"I hope I don't disappoint them," he said.

That seems unlikely, given Lithgow's impressive family background and rise to fame.

He was born to Sarah Jane Price, a retired actress, and Arthur Lithgow, a theatrical producer and director who ran the McCarter Theatre in Princeton, N.J. John was the only of the four children to pursue a career in theater.

He won a scholarship to Harvard University where he graduated magna cum laude in 1967. Lithgow shared the same dorm with former Vice President Al Gore and actor Tommy Lee Jones.

Lithgow's Broadway debut in 1973 in "The Changing Room" earned him a Tony Award and Drama Desk Award as the best featured actor in a play. Between 1973 and 1982, he appeared in a new Broadway show each year, earning two more best actor Tony nominations.

His film career took off in the '80s after a nomination for an Academy Award for his portrayal of a transsexual ex-pro football player in "The World According to Garp."

A few of his numerous other roles include "Terms of Endearment," "Footloose," the cult classic "The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension" and "2010: Odyssey Two."

Lithgow played the paranoid passenger John Valentine in a remake of a Twilight Zone episode "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet: The Movie" which originally starred William Shatner. He was also the voice of the villain Lord Farquaad in the animated movie "Shrek."

Most recently, he had a small role in "Dreamgirls." Lithgow played the film producer Jerry Harris who offered Deena Jones (Beyonc/ Knowles) a film role. In 2002, he won a Tony for Best Leading Actor in a Musical for an adaptation of the 1957 film "Sweet Smell of Success."

Lithgow became most widely known for his starring role as Dick Solomon in the 1996-2001 television sitcom "3rd Rock from the Sun," for which he earned six Emmy Award nominations and won three as outstanding lead actor in a comedy series.

He said he became familiar with Montana when he met his wife, Mary Yeager, in 1980.

"My wife is from Conrad," he said. "We spent a lot of time here. Finally, we decided we should get a place here."

Lithgow has a son from an earlier marriage and a son and daughter from his marriage to Yeager. He has written many books for children.

"I've done seven with an eighth on the way," Lithgow said. "I also give concerts for kids."

He described his Whitefish performance as an adult show, mainly due to the length. Lithgow said he limits performances to about 40 or 50 minutes.

The actor said little about the content of his one-man show, beyond its theme of storytelling and the comic nature.

"I'm so eager to surprise people that I don't want to reveal too much," Lithgow said with a laugh. "The essence of good storytelling is not knowing what's coming."

He expressed regret that he must leave for England after just one performance of his show. He has committed to play Malvolio in "Twelfth Night," a Shakespearean character who becomes a pawn in a complex romantic ruse.

He looks forward to returning to Shakespeare for the first time since 1975. But Lithgow has one major regret.

"I'm going to miss summer in Montana," he said. "I love it here."

Reporter Candace Chase may be reached at 758-4436 or by e-mail at cchase@dailyinterlake.com