Betty Buckley to Go On in ‘GREY GARDENS’ Following Horse Riding Accident

By Jessica Showers

Broadway World

June 30, 2015

Tony winner Betty Buckley’s back might be broken, but that won’t stop her from taking the stage in GREY GARDENS at Bay Street Theater this August.

In an interview with Walker Vreeland, Buckley revealed that she recently fractured five vertebrae in her lower back after a fall from her horse while riding on her Texas ranch.

Buckley said her doctor (who also works for the Dallas Cowboys) is “positive and energetic” and “optimistic” about her recovery; she is reportedly healing very quickly for a woman of her age.

After her fall, Buckley originally feared she would have to have surgery, but her doctor reassured her by telling her football player Tony Romo had the same injury, they taped him up and he went back out on the field. “If Tony Romo can do it, I can!” Buckley said, laughing.

And fortunately for theatergoers, ‘Big Edie’ spends the majority of GREY GARDENS in bed. Buckley emailed director Michael Wilson to tell him about the accident, writing, “I can’t believe the universe would go to such detail to try to prepare me to play a part…I won’t even have to act.”

Buckley said the “sobering experience” made her realize not only how lucky she is to be alive, but also that she is fragile, and she can’t do everything the way she used to. Still, BWW can’t wait to see her onstage in August, in top form, as always!

The actress will be joined by Tony nominee Howard McGillin and Drama Desk winner Rachel York in GREY GARDENS, running August 4-30. GREY GARDENS features a book by Doug Wright, music by Scott Frankel, and lyrics by Michael Korie.

GREY GARDENS “tells the story of Big Edie and Little Edie Bouvier Beale, the eccentric aunt and cousin of Jaqueline Kennedy Onassis. It is based on the 1975 documentary by Albert and David Maysles, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. Set at the Bouvier mansion in East Hampton, this bold musical follows a mother and daughter on their hilarious and heartbreaking journey from glamorous aristocrats to notorious recluses in a crumbling house filled with memories and cats.”