The Third Story by Charles Busch, replaces MCC's world premiere of LaButes 'The Break of Noon'

MCC Theater has announced that the second offering of their 2008-09 season will be Charles Busch�s The Third Story, directed by Carl Andress.

The Third Story replaces the previously announced World Premiere production of Neil LaBute�s 'The Break of Noon,' which the company will now present as their first show of MCC Theater�s 24th season, in September of 2009.

Busch will appear in The Third Story himself in the leading female role; further casting will be announced shortly.

This production will mark the New York Premiere of the show following a recently completed run at La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego. The Third Story will open at the Lucille Lortel Theatre on 2 Feb 2009, following previews from 14 Jan and run through to 28 Feb 2009.

The Third Story: A mother and son screenwriting team hunker down in Omaha after fleeing Commie-obsessed 1940�s Hollywood. A romantically-inclined but socially-inept princess makes a deal with an ancient witch. And tommy guns meet test tubes as a way-too-well-dressed first lady of the mob forms a desperate alliance with a cloning scientist whose experiments have had, um, less-than-consistent results.

�With our production of Neil LaBute�s reasons to be pretty now slated to open on Broadway in early 2009, we felt that Neil, his two plays, and our audience, would be best served if these plays did not open back-to-back,� explained Artistic Director Robert LuPone. �We are especially thrilled to have the opportunity to present Charles Busch�s new work and have a win-win situation on our hands. We get to produce two plays we are passionate about and Charles can have his long-awaited Lortel homecoming. He tells us he cannot wait to get back on the Lortel stage after playing 'Red Scare on Sunset' there in 1991.�

Charles Busch is the author and star of such plays as 'The Lady in Question,' 'Red Scare on Sunset' and 'Vampire Lesbians of Sodom,' which ran five years and is one of the longest running plays in Off Broadway history. His play 'The Tale of the Allergist�s Wife' ran for 777 performances on Broadway and received a Tony nomination for Best Play. His play 'Die, Mummy Die!" played at New World Stages from 21 Oct 2008 to 13 Jan 2008.

Carl Andress (Director) recently directed the world premiere of 'The Third Story' at San Diego's La Jolla Playhouse. Off-Broadway his credits include 'Die Mommie Die!' (New World Stages,) 'Shanghai Moon' (Greenwich House) and 'Queen Amarantha' WPA Theatre, all written by Charles Busch.

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