Roundabout Theatre Company's American premiere of Irish playwright Brian Friel's Give Me Your Answer, Do will close its 14 week subscription run at the Gramercy Theatre on Jan. 2.
Friel's play stars Joey Grey ("Cabaret"), Lois Smith, Kate Burton, Gawn Grainger, Helen Carey, John Glover and Michael Emerson.
With Answer, Do! Roundabout continued its relationship with Friel, having previously presented the American premiere of Friel's Molly Sweeney and a revival of Philadelphia, Here I Come!. Other plays by Friel include the 1992 Tony Award-winning best play, Dancing at Lughnasa, Lovers, The Mundy Scheme, The Loves of Cass McGuire, Faith Healer, Aristocrats, Wonderful Tennessee and The Freedom of the City.
Answer, Do! is set in Donegal, Ireland, where novelist Tom Connolly and wife Daisy nervously await the decision of their houseguest as to whether he will purchase Tom's papers for a U.S. college library -- a deal which would offer some compensation following Tom's literary paralysis.
In terms of the cast, Answer, Do! marks the return to the spotlight of Tony and Academy Award-winner, Joel Grey. Although Grey recently appeared as Mr. Cellophane in Chicago, he hasn't officially starred in a play since Larry Kramer's The Normal Heart in 1985. Tony and OBIE-winning actor Glover won his awards for playing not one but two roles as twins in both the stage and screen versions of Terrence McNally's Love! Valour! Compassion!.
Though Michael Emerson was recently featured in the ensemble of The Iceman Cometh, audiences may be more familiar with him through his performance as the original Oscar Wilde in the long running Off-Broadway hit, Gross Indecencies.
Kate Burton stepped in for the final weeks of Beauty Queen of Leenane for Marie Mullen. She also replaced Kate Nelligan in An American Daughter. Burton's other credits include Company, Jake's Women, Some Americans Abroad (Drama Desk Nomination),Wild Honey, Doonesbury, Alice in Wonderland, and Present Laughter (a role for which she won a Theatre World Award).
Kyle Donnelly, a former Associate Artistic Director of Arena Stage, directs. The design team for Answer includes Tom Lynch (sets), Martin Pakledinaz (costumes) and Kenneth Posner (lighting).
-- By Murdoch McBride
