By way of contrast, the younger character Bobby only says "fuck" in situations of extreme duress: immediately after being beaten and his final apology to Donny.
American Buffalo opened in Chicago at the Goodman Theatre Stage II on November 23, 1975, directed by Gregory Mosher with a cast that featured William H. Macy (Bobby), Bernard Erhard (Teach), and J.J. Johnston (Donny).
Directed by Gregory Mosher, the cast featured Mike Kellin (Teach), Michael Egan (Donny) and J. T. Walsh (Bobby).
Directed by Ulu Grosbard, the cast featured Robert Duvall (Teach), Kenneth McMillan (Donny), and John Savage (Bobby).
The play was produced again Off-Broadway at the Circle in the Square (Downtown) in June 1981, starring Al Pacino as Teach, Thomas G. Waites (Bobby) and Clifton James (Donny) and directed by Arvin Brown.
Directed by Arvin Brown, the cast starred Al Pacino (Walter Cole, called Teach), James Hayden (Bobby) and J. J. Johnston (Donny Dubrow).
[9] The play was presented at the Donmar Warehouse, London, from January 28, 2000 to February 26, starring William H. Macy (Teach), Philip Baker Hall (Donny) and Mark Webber (Bobby), directed by Neil Pepe.
The play was revived on Broadway in 2008 and starred Cedric the Entertainer, Haley Joel Osment, and John Leguizamo, but it closed after eight performances.
[12] The play was produced at Wyndham's Theatre in the West End, London, directed by Daniel Evans and starring John Goodman as Donny, Damian Lewis as Teach, and Tom Sturridge as Bobby.
Another revival on Broadway, directed by Neil Pepe and starring Laurence Fishburne, Sam Rockwell and Darren Criss at the Circle in the Square Theatre was set to begin previews in March 2020 with an official opening on April 14,[14][15] but the show suspended production due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
[17][18] In the end, the production with the aforementioned cast & director began a 16-week run on March 22, 2022 with a final performance set for July 10, 2022.
Working with the tiniest imaginable vocabulary – words like nothing, great, and no, as well as those of four letters – Mr. Mamet creates a subterranean world with its own nonliterate comic beat, life-and death struggles, pathos and even affection...
The 1977 Broadway production was nominated for two Tony Awards: Best Direction of a Play and Best Scenic Design (Santo Loquasto).
The play was also adapted to a 1996 film, with Dennis Franz (Don), Dustin Hoffman (Teach), and Sean Nelson (Bobby).