Created by Morris Panych and Wendy Gorling and featuring music by Dmitri Shostakovich, The Overcoat began Aug. 25 and opened Aug. 31 at the California company's Geary Theater for a run originally slated through Sept. 25. The extension is attributed to "wide critical acclaim and strong audience word-of-mouth," according to A.C.T.

Peter Anderson stars in a cast of 22 actors on the two-story mechanical set of The Overcoat, which tells the story of a lowly office worker — "relentlessly bullied by his fellow draftsmen, scorned by his secretaries, and doggedly pursued by an amorous and repellent landlady," according to the company — whose life suddenly takes a turn when he comes into a new coat. The work is performed without a single spoken word, drawing on commedia dell'arte and English pantomime techniques.

The design team for The Overcoat includes Ken MacDonald (sets), Nancy Bryant (costumes) and Alan Brodie (lights).

The Overcoat made its world premiere at The Vancouver Playhouse in 1997 and earned a slew of honors at the Jessie Richardson Theatre Awards. The work was revived by CanStage in 2003 and played to sold-out houses last year at The Barbican Theatre.

A.C.T.'s 39th anniversary season continues with Tennessee Williams' Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (Oct. 13-Nov. 13), David Mamet's Sexual Perversity in Chicago (Jan. 5-Feb. 5, 2006), August Wilson's Gem of the Ocean (Feb. 10-March 12, 2006), Richard Brinsley Sheridan's The Rivals (March 23-April 23, 2006), Caryl Churchill's A Number (April 28-May 28, 2006) and Michael Feingold's adaptation of Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill's Happy End (June 8-July 9, 2006). Tickets and subscriptions are available to the season at A.C.T., 415 Geary St. in San Francisco, CA, by calling (415) 749-2228. For more information, visit www.act-sf.org.