The pair already proved their chemistry in the TV sitcom about about the Mayor of New York and his assistants (the series was conceived as a vehicle for Michael J. Fox, as the mayor's right-hand man).
Ruck built musical theatre muscle as Bloom for a year in the road company of the Mel Brooks smash. Kind, the big-featured, bigger-than-life character actor last seen on Broadway (briefly) in Sly Fox stepped into the wingtips of Max Bialystock Dec. 21, 2004, at the St. James Theatre. He replaced Brad Oscar, who is taking over the Max role in the London company.
In his Playbill bio, Ruck writes that a couple of years ago he off-handedly said to Richard Kind that they should do The Producers together.
"Four years ago when this thing opened up, we were doing 'Spin City,' we were in L.A.," Ruck told Playbill On-Line. "I said, 'Y'know that's something we could do together.' He looked at me like I had three heads. He thought for a lot of reasons it would never happen. He also thought that he would play Max before I would ever play Leo. They offered the road to him, but he was expecting twins at the time. I think he's perfect for Max."
Ruck said he had a ball doing TV with Kind. "We had more fun than we probably should have had," Ruck said. "We made friends for life. He and I and Michael Boatman and Barry Bostwick are friends for life. Michael Fox picked his playmates, so he picked people who sort of had a similar twisted sense of humor. So we immediately, all of us, just hit it off. We were very lucky. Most of the stuff we did is unprintable."
Kind also distinguished himself in the recent Stephen Sondheim musical Bounce (he's on the cast album), in Broadway's The Tale of the Allergist's Wife and on TV shows including "Carol & Company" and "Mad About You."
Bialystock is one of two crooked but charming producers who scheme to overfinance a flop and pocket the leftovers. Nathan Lane won a Tony Award creating the role on Broadway and starred in the London premiere.
Bloom is the nebbishy accountant who is seduced into showbiz, becoming Max's partner in crime. The role on stage was created by Matthew Broderick, who starred with Ruck in the feature film "Ferris Bueller's Day Off." Ruck replaces Hunter Foster in the role. Foster now heads the touring company that Ruck recently left (he starts Jan. 14). After two years, that tour ends Jan. 30.
Kind got his feet wet at the St. James with Jonathan Freeman (as Roger DeBris), John Treacy Egan (Franz), Brooks Ashmanskas (Carmen) and Angie Schworer (Ulla).
*
Nathan Lane is returning to the U.S. for pre-production work on the film version of The Producers, to co-star Matthew Broderick and Will Ferrell (as Franz).
Tickets for the Broadway run range $30-$100, are on sale by phone through Tele-charge at (212) 239-6200 and in-person at The St. James Theatre, 246 West 44th Street. The playing schedule is Tuesday evening at 7 PM, Wednesday through Saturday evenings at 8 PM, Wednesday & Saturday matinees at 2 PM, and Sunday matinees at 3 PM.
