Stage Beauty

Based loosely on the diaries of Samuel Pepys, this Restoration Era drama follows the real historical figure of Edward Kynaston (Billy Crudrup), an actor known for his celebrated portrayals of Shakespeare’s heroines. But Edward’s dresser, Maria (Claire Danes), longs to go on stage herself even though female actors are forbidden by law. Through a change of fortunes, Maria becomes a star under the new, more lenient rule of Charles II and it is Edward who finds he no longer knows how to play a man. When Maria turns to Edward for help in a production of Othello, each discovers what they are truly capable of as artists.