The Whipping Man at NY City Center Stage I

Manhattan Theatre Club will present the New York premiere of Matthew Lopez's The Whipping Man, directed by Tony Award winner Doug Hughes ('The Royal Family' & 'Doubt'). The limited engagement will begin previews at New York City Center - Stage I on 13 Jan 2011, and open on 1 Feb 2011.

The Whipping Man: April, 1865: The Civil War has ended. Caleb DeLeon, a Jewish Confederate soldier, returns wounded from the battlefield to find his family home in ruins, abandoned by everyone except Simon and John--two former slaves, who were raised as Jews in the DeLeon home. As the three men reunite to celebrate Passover, and recall the exodus from Egypt in light of their own new liberties, they uncover a tangle of secrets... ties that bind them together and that, ultimately, might cost each man his freedom.

The New York debut of Matthew Lopez's historical drama is a tale of loyalty, deceit and deliverance, and a fascinating portrayal of three men, and this country, at a crossroads.

Casting and creative team for The Whipping Man as well as other listings information will be announced in the coming weeks.

Since its premiere at Luna Stage in Montclair, NJ, The Whipping Man has been produced at The Old Globe in San Diego, CA and at Barrington Stage in Pittsfield, Massachusetts.

Matthew Lopez's other plays include 'Tio Pepe' (Summer Play Festival 2008), 'Reverberation,' and 'Zoey's Perfect Wedding.' His work has been developed and seen at The McCarter Theatre, The New Group, Penumbra Theatre Company, Ars Nova and The Lark Play Development Center. He is a member of the Ars Nova Writers' Group, a New York Theatre Workshop Playwrighting Fellow and artist-in-residence at the Old Globe Theatre.