Elizabeth McGovern and Aaron Costa Ganis in
Ava: The Secret Conversations
Written by Elizabeth McGovern
Based on the book The Secret Conversations
by Peter Evans & Ava Gardner
Produced by Karl Sydow
Directed by Moritz von Stuelpnagel
Ava: The Secret Conversations
Written by Elizabeth McGovern
Based on the book The Secret Conversations
by Peter Evans & Ava Gardner
Produced by Karl Sydow
Directed by Moritz von Stuelpnagel
About the Play
Academy Award, Golden Globe and Emmy Award-nominated actor Elizabeth McGovern stars as Hollywood's original femme fatale Ava Gardner in a critically acclaimed new play lauded by Entertainment Weekly as “mesmerizing and electric!”
The Golden Age of Cinema’s Ava Gardner sat for a series of real-life interviews with writer Peter Evans in an attempt to glean the juicy details about her life story, her marriages to Mickey Rooney, Artie Shaw, and Frank Sinatra, and her turbulent relationship to Howard Hughes. Initially barred from publication, Evans’ stories of a bygone era were published twenty-five years later with permission from Gardener’s estate and is now reimagined on stage played by “two powerful forces” Elizabeth McGovern as Ava and Aaron Costa Ganis as Peter.
RUN TIME
Approximately 90 minutes with no intermission
WARNINGS
Herbal cigarette smoke, flashes of light
CONTENT
This production contains profanity and discussions of sex and sexual assault. Recommended for 12+

NEW YORK CITY CENTER
131 W 55th Street, New York, NY 10019
JULY 30 - SEPTEMBER 13, 2025
Produced by Karl Sydow
Produced with the support of the Ava Gardner Trust