"True West" is about the sibling rivalry between two estranged brothers who have reconnected. Austin, the younger brother, is a Hollywood screenwriter working on a screenplay while house sitting for his mother, who is vacationing in Alaska. His older brother, Lee, appears at the house after the two have not seen each other for years. Lee is a drifter and a thief and has been living in the desert. The two are not on good terms, but Austin attempts to appease his older brother, who is more dominant.

“True West” originally opened at the Public on Dec 10, 1980. Robert Woodruff directed a cast headed by Peter Boyle & Tommy Lee Jones. On Oct 17, 1982 a 2nd production opened at the Cherry Lane. Gary Sinise was the director and John Malkovich & Mr Sinise headed the cast. In 1983, PBS produced a film version starring Messrs Malkovich & Sinise.

Sidelight: Mr Hoffman & Mr Reilly will rotate in the roles of the estranged brothers, “Austin,” the Hollywood intellectual, and “Lee,” the small-time criminal & drifter.