'Absurd Person Singular' - Sam Robards completes cast.

Manhattan Theatre Club have announced that Sam Robards will join the cast of the upcoming Broadway production of Absurd Person Singular by Alan Ayckbourn.

The comedy opens at the Biltmore Theatre on the 18 Oct 2005, following previews from the 22 Sep 2005

The full cast, directed by John Tillinger, features Mireille Enos (Eva), Clea Lewis (Jane), Sam Robards (Geoffrey), Alan Ruck (Sidney), Deborah Rush (Marion), and Paxton Whitehead (Ronald).

Three couples, three kitchens, three successive Christmas Eves: welcome to the world of Alan Ayckbourn�s comedy about social class and splendid cocktails.

This marks the sixth Alan Ayckbourn play Manhattan Theatre Club has produced. The almost 20 year relationship began with the 1988 production of 'Woman in Mind'. Subsequent productions include: 'Absent Friends' (1991), 'A Small Family Business' (1992), 'Comic Potential' (2000) and the interwoven plays 'House and Garden' (2002). Director John Tillinger has previously helmed MTC�s productions of Ayckbourn�s 'House and Garden' and 'Comic Potential'.

The creative team for Absurd Person Singular includes John Lee Beatty (set design), Jane Greenwood (costume design), Brian MacDevitt (lighting design), and Bruce Ellman (sound design).

Tickets for Absurd Person Singular go on sale to the general public on the 6 Sep 2005.

BIOGRAPHY:

Alan Ayckbourn (Playwright) most recently directed the American premiere of his play 'Private Fears in Public Places' as part of the Brits Off-Broadway Festival. Sir Alan is the author of over 60 plays, most of which premiered at The Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, England, where he is the long-serving Artistic Director. His plays have been translated into 40 languages and performed throughout the world. Plays include 'Comic Potential,' 'Communicating Doors,' 'Relatively Speaking,' 'How The Other Half Loves,' 'Absurd Person Singular,' 'The Norman Conquests,' 'Bedroom Farce,' 'Woman in Mind,' 'A Small Family Business,' and with Andrew Lloyd Webber the musical 'By Jeeves.'

John Tillinger (Director). Most recently directed 'A Picasso' at Manhattan Theatre Club. Broadway Credits include: 'Judgment at Nuremberg,' 'Night Must Fall,' 'Getting and Spending,' 'The Sunshine Boy's,' 'Inherit the Wind' (Outer Critics Circle Award), 'Broken Glass,' 'The Price,' 'Three Men on a Horse,' 'Sweet Sue,' 'Loot!,' Corpse!,' 'The Golden Age' and 'Solomon's Child.' West End/London: 'What the Butler Saw,' 'Love Letters' and 'Corpse!'

Mireille Enos (Eva) Broadway Credits 'Who�s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?' Other credits include: 'The Invention of Love' (Kate Houseman), the pre-Broadway production of The Miracle Worker'' (Kate Keller). Off-B�way credits include: 'Right You Are' (National Actors Theatre), 'Time of the Cuckoo' (Lincoln Center), 'The Castle' (Manhattan Ensemble Theatre), and 'The Pelican' (Classic Stage). TV/film: 'Rescue Me,' 'Strong Medicine,' 'The Education of Max Bickford,' 'Sex and the City' and 'Someone Like You.

Clea Lewis (Jane) will be making her Broadway debut. She returns to MTC where she previously appeared in 'An Experiment with an Air Pump' and 'Fuddy Meers.' Most recently, she appeared in the Atlantic Theatre Company production of Woody Allen�s 'Writer�s Block' and the MCC production of 'Last Easter'. Film: 'The Rich Man's Wife,' 'Diabolique,' 'Scotch and Milk'. Television credits include: Audrey in the long running ABC sitcom 'Ellen.' 'Flying Blind,' 'Mad About You,' 'Friends,' 'The Tracey Ullman Show,' 'The Martin Short Show,' and many others.

Alan Ruck (Sidney) recently appeared alongside his 'Spin City' co-star Richard Kind in 'The Producers' as Leo Bloom (and subsequently appeared with Hunter Foster). Mr. Ruck spent six seasons on 'Spin City' playing the abrasive Stuart Bondek. Other stage credits include: 'The Producers' (first national tour); 'Biloxi Blues' (Broadway); 'Moonchildren' (Second Stage); 'The Lucky Spot' (Manhattan Theatre Club); 'Private Lives' (Weston Playhouse); 'The Boys Next Door' (McCarter Theatre); 'Red River,' 'Life and Limb,' 'Album,' 'One Shining Moment' and 'Billy Bishop Goes to War', all in Chicago. Film: 'Cheaper by the Dozen,' 'Everything Put Together,' 'Speed,' 'Twister,' 'Star Trek: Generations,' 'Young Guns II,' 'Three for the Road' and 'Ferris Bueller�s Day Off,' among others. Other television credits include: 'Muscle,' 'Daddy�s Girls,' 'Going Places' and various guest spots.

Sam RObards (Geoffrey) made his Broadway debut as Gustav Eberson in Roundabout�s revival of Arthur Miller�s 'The Man Who Had All The Luck' for which he received a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Play. His Off-Broadway credits include: 'Album' (at the Cherry Lane); 'Moon Children,' and 'Flux' (Second Stage). Regional theatre credits include 'Idiot's Delight' (Kennedy Center); 'The Philadelphia Story' (at the Hartman). Film credits include 'Marmalade,' 'Life as a House,' 'American Beauty,' 'Bounce,' 'Beautiful Girls,' 'Mrs. Parker & the Vicious Circle,' and 'Pret a Porter' and many others. TV credits include the recurring role of Greg Brock on 'The West Wing,' 'Law & Order: CI,' 'Spin City,' 'Eichmann,' 'Get a Life,' and 'Into Thin Air.'

Deborah Rush (Marion) last appeared on Broadway in the 1985 revival of 'Hay Fever'. Ms. Rush created the role of Brooke Ashton in the hit original Broadway production of Michael Frayan�s 'Noises Off'. This fall she will be seen in film based on the cult Comedy Central show 'Strangers with Candy' where she reprises the role of Sara Blank, step-mother of Amy Sedaris� Jerri Blank. Other film credits: 'American Wedding,' 'In and Out,' 'My Blue Heaven,' 'Family Business,' 'She-Devil,' 'Parents,' 'Reckless,' 'You�ve Got Mail,' 'The Purple Rose of Cairo.' Her television appearances include 'Law & Order: SVU,' 'Spin City,' 'Crime Story,' and 'Spencer for Hire.'

Paxton Whitehead (Ronald). Broadway credits include: 'My Fair Lady' (revival), 'A Little Hotel on the Side,' 'Lettice and Lovage,' 'Artist Descending a Staircase,' 'Run for your Wife,' 'Noises Off,' 'Camelot,' 'The Crucifer of Blood,' 'Habeas Corpus,' 'Candida,' 'Beyond the Fringe,' and 'The Affair.' As a writer, his theatre credits include adaptations of 'Chemin de Fer' and 'There�s One in Every Marriage.' Film credits include: 'Kate & Leopold,' 'The Duke,' 'Rocket Man,' 'My Boyfriend�s Back,' and 'The Adventures of Huck Finn.' His television appearances include: 'The West Wing,' 'The Drew Carey Show,' 'Mad About You,' 'Friends,' 'Frasier,' 'Third Rock From the Sun,' 'Caroline in the City,' and 'Ellen.'