The Big Knife: Bobby Cannavale to star

The Roundabout Theatre Company have announced that Emmy Award winner and Tony nominee Bobby Cannavale will star in their upcoming Broadway revival of Clifford Odetas' The Big Knife, directed by Tony Award winner Doug Hughes, playing at the American Airline Theatre from 22 MAr -2013 - 2 Jun 2013.

The full cast & design team will be announced soon.

Roundabout Theatre Company's Artistic Director TOodd Haimes said, "The Big Knife is well overdue for a revival - it's written by one of our greatest American playwrights with an array of great roles for actors to sink their teeth into. I love the language Odets uses in The Big Knife and how he digs into the dark side of Old Hollywood. This story has all of the glamour we associate with that time and place. Doug Hughes gets this period and this kind of high-style language. As our Resident Director, he also understands Roundabout and shares our dedication to finding exciting, seldom-seen plays like this to revive. I'm a huge fan of Bobby Cannavale, and I think he's one of those modern actors who you can really imagine fitting right into the 1940s. There's something wonderfully old-school about him, and I'm so happy that we'll get to see Bobby take on a great role like Charlie Castle."

The Big Knife: In the golden age of Hollywood cinema, actors may have all the glory, but studio execs have all the power. The Hoff-Federated studio has had its most successful star, Charlie Castle (Bobby Cannavale), over a barrel ever since it helped cover up a mistake that could have ended his career. When a woman with insider knowledge threatens to come forward, the studio heads will stop at nothing to protect Charlie's secret... but how far is he willing to go before he quits the movie business for good?

This is the first new Broadway production since The Big Knife premiered on Broadway in 1949. That production, directed by Lee Strasberg, starred John Garfield as 'Charlie Castle,' and ran for 109 performances.

Bios:

Director Doug Hughes is Roundabout Theatre Company's Resident Director. For Roundabout, he most recently staged the world premier of Maury Yeston's musical 'Death Takes a Holiday' and the Broadway production of 'Mrs. Warren's Profession' starring Cherry Jones & Sally Hawkins, 'A Man For All Seasons' starring Frank Langella, 'A Touch of the Poet' starring Gabriel Byrne and 'A Naked Girl on the Appian Way' starring Jill Clayburgh and Richard Thomas.

Bobby Cannavale (Charlie Castle) made his Broadway debut in Theresa Rebeck's 'Mauritius,' for which he was nominated for a Tony Award. He was most recently seen in 'The Motherfuker With The Hat' (Tony Award nomination). On television Cannavale won an Emmy Award® for his performance as Will's boyfriend on NBC's "Will & Grace." Television appearances include HBO's "Six Feet Under," the ABC comedy series "Cupid" and he is currently co-starring this season on "Nurse Jackie." This fall Cannavale joins the cast of HBO's "Boardwalk Empire." Film credits include "The Station Agent," "The Other Guys," "Paul Blart: Mall Cop," "Brief Interviews with Hideous Men," "Diminished Capacity," "Fast Food Nation," "The Night Listener" and most recently, "Win Win."

Clifford Odets (1906 - 1963) dropped out of high school at the age of 17 to become an actor. As one of the original members of the New York City-based left-wing ensemble, the Group Theatre, Odets found his true calling as a playwright who explored the pressing social issues of the day. He used a taxi drivers' strike as the inspiration for his (and the Group Theatre's) first breakout success, 'Waiting For Lefty.' This first play was followed by 'Awake and Sing!,' 'Till The Day I Die,' 'Paradise Lost,' 'Golden Boy,' 'Rocket To The Moon,' 'Night Music,' 'Clash By Night,' 'The Big Knife' and 'The Country Girl.' He also wrote many screenplays including the film adaptation of the novel 'Sweet Smell of Success.'