Beckett Shorts, four one-act plays, at New York Theatre Workshop

New York Theatre Workshop will present Beckett Shorts, an evening of four one-act plays written by Samuel Beckett and directed by JoAnne Akalaitis, opening at the New York Theatre Workshop on 16 Dec 2007, following previews from 5 Dec and running through to 20 Jan 2008.

Five-time OBIE award winning director JoAnne Akalaitis joins with Mikhail Baryshnikov and composer Philip Glass to bring four of Samuel Beckett's one-act plays�'Act Without Words I,' 'Act Without Words II,' 'Eh Joe,' and 'Rough For Theatre I'� to NYTW as Beckett Shorts.

Samuel Beckett�s work includes the plays Waiting for Godot, Endgame, Happy Days, Krapp�s Last Tape, Play, as well as numerous novels, short plays, and plays for television and radio. He received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1969.

The cast of Beckett Shorts is Mikhail Baryshnikov, Bill Camp, Karen Kandel and David Neumann.

The creative team for Beckett Shorts features sculptor and architect Alexander Brodsky in his first theatrical effort as set designer. The team also includes costume design by Kaye Voyce, lighting design by Jennifer Tipton, video design by Mirit Tal and original music by Philip Glass.

New York Theatre Workshop Artistic Director James Nicola says, �JoAnne Akalaitis and Philip Glass were two of the founding members of the inimitable theatre collective Mabou Mines, which was partly established in response to the founders' deep regard for the writing of Samuel Beckett. In turn, Mabou Mines came to be recognized as one of the foremost interpreters of his work. Audiences have long awaited the next Beckett production from Akalaitis and Glass, and their collaboration with dance luminary Mikhail Baryshnikov and internationally renowned sculptor Alexander Brodsky on Beckett Shorts is a historic event that New York Theatre Workshop is proud and honored to be a part of.�