Colin Hanlon

Primary Stages announces casting and further details for Final Follies & Downstairs

Colin Hanlon and more lead the cast of A.R. Gurney's Final Follies at the Cherry Lane Theatre.

Tom Millward
Tom Millward

Primary Stages has announced further details for the first two productions of the company's previously announced 2018-2019 season at off-Broadway's Cherry Lane Theatre, including complete casting for Final Follies - a uniquely curated selection of three one-act plays in honor of late playwright A.R. Gurney.

The cast of Final Follies includes (in alphabetical order) Betsy Aidem (as Professor Carroway/Wilma), Colin Hanlon (as Nelson/Mike), Mark Junek (as Walter), Piter Marek (as Professor Burgess/Howie), Greg Mullavey (as Grandfather), Rachel Nicks (as Tanisha/Sally), and Deborah Rush (as Bunny Stuntz).

Directed by David Saint, Final Follies begins previews on September 12, 2018, ahead of an official opening on October 2 and a limited engagement through to October 21, 2018.

Synopsis: "The Love Course is an observation of the culminating meeting of an undergraduate romantic literature course, co-taught by two of academia's most eccentric professors. The Rape of Bunny Stuntz is an enigmatic story of an overburdened woman anxiously trying to keep her personal life from the throes of chaos while leading a rowdy community meeting. The titular Final Follies is the last chapter in Gurney's oeuvre of short plays examining WASP life in America, about a forlorn Manhattanite searching for the key to adulthood in the most truly, and literally, adult place imaginable."

The creative team behind Final Follies features scenic design by James Youmans, costume design by David Murin, lighting design by Cory Pattak, and sound design by Scott Killian.

As previously reported, Primary Stages' production of Downstairs will feature real-life siblings, Emmy & Tony Award winner Tyne Daly and Emmy Award nominee Tim Daly, together on a New York stage for the very first time. The company has now announced dates and creative team information for the production.

Downstairs is a new gripping family drama by Theresa Rebeck, directed by Adrienne Campbell-Holt, which is set to begin previews at the Cherry Lane Theatre on November 7, 2018, ahead of an official opening night on November 18 and a limited engagement through to December 22, 2018.

Synopsis: "In Downstairs, Teddy is a bit lost and has found himself staying in his older sister Irene's unfinished basement, which has infuriated her husband Gerry. As Irene and Teddy struggle with this less-than-ideal living arrangement, they quickly find themselves grappling with the burden of their family's troublesome history. While trying to mend the past, the pair unearths a foreboding danger threatening to break the perilously thin bonds holding them together."

The cast includes Tyne Daly (as Irene) and Tim Daly (as Teddy), alongside John Procaccino (as Gerry).

The creative team behind Downstairs features scenic design by Narelle Sissons, costume design by Sarah Laux, lighting design by Michael Giannitti, and sound design by M.L. Dogg.

Originally published on

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