InterAct Theatre Company continues its long-time relationship with Pulitzer Prize- and Tony-nominated playwright Blessing with the new work, which begins April 9 toward an April 14 opening. Commissioned by InterAct in 2008, When We Go Upon the Sea is set in a high-end hotel room at The Hague, and imagines Bush on the eve of his trial for international war crimes. "Tended to by an inscrutable Dutch butler and an alluring masseuse, the President embarks on a long night of drinking, joking, and ruminating, taking the audience through a deep exploration of how we regard our leaders — loving them, fearing them, unintentionally deifying them," according to InterAct notes.

The play "examines an American populace that has grown strikingly complacent in the wake of extraordinary global challenges, exposing one of the world's most intriguing and influential conflicts: the battle between the elected leader of the free world and a democracy of millions."

Blessing is the author of A Walk in the Woods, Cobb, Two Rooms, Thief River, Down the Road, Going to St. Ives and more.

McCarty appeared on Broadway in Macbeth with Christopher Plummer and Glenda Jackson, and A Few Good Men, and Off-Broadway in Dark Rapture, Rounding Third and his own play, Drowning in Loch Ness.

The cast also includes Barrymore Award winner Kim Carson (playing Anna Lisa) and Peter Schmitz (playing Peit).

Paul Meshejian, the production's director, is the founding artistic director of PlayPenn, a national new play development conference located in Philadelphia.

When We Go Upon the Sea continues to May 9 at InterAct's home on the Mainstage of The Adrienne, 2030 Sansom Street, Philadelphia, PA.

For tickets and information, call InterAct's box office at (215) 568-8079, or visit InterAct's website at www.InterActTheatre.org.