Performances of Darkness are scheduled to begin Sept. 6. The play, according to press notes, is "set amidst the squalor, superstition and ignorance of a peasant village in Russia. The play's subtitle, 'If the claw is caught, the bird is lost,' evocatively describes the downward spiral of the play's young protagonist whose philandering ensnares him in a web of murder, adultery and infanticide leading ultimately to despair and a cry for redemption."

Tolstoy wrote the play in 1886; however, it was banned in Russia where it was not produced until 1895, after Tolstoy satisfied the censor and agreed to provide an alternative for the play's most powerful and horrific scene. The Power of Darkness was first produced in New York in 1906 in Yiddish and was last seen by New York audiences in 1959.

The Mint cast includes Mark Alhadeff, Lisa Altomare, Jennifer Bissell, Steve Brady, Randy Danson, Scott Freeman, Anne Letscher, Peter Levine, Angela Reed, Jeff Steitzer and Alok Tewari. Martin Platt will direct.

The Power Of Darkness features set design by Bill Clarke, costume design by Holly Poe Durbin, lighting design by Jeff Nellis and music by Ellen Mandel.

The Power of Darkness will play the Mint Theater through Oct. 28. The Mint Theater is located at 311 West 43rd Street in Manhattan. Tickets are available by calling (212) 315-0231 or by visiting www.minttheater.org.