Mary Beth Hurt Joins Cast of Churchill's Top Girls

By Andrew Gans
and Kenneth Jones
11 Mar 2008

Mary Beth Hurt
Mary Beth Hurt

Three-time Tony nominee Mary Beth Hurt has joined the cast of Caryl Churchill's Top Girls, which will begin previews at Broadway's Biltmore Theatre April 15 with an official opening scheduled for May 7.

Hurt, who will play Louise/Waitress, joins a cast that includes the previously announced Mary Catherine Garrison (as Patient Griselda/Jeanine/Kit/Shona), three-time Obie Award winner Elizabeth Marvel (as Marlene), Drama Desk Award winner Martha Plimpton (as Pope Joan/Angie), Academy Award winner Marisa Tomei (as Isabella Bird/Joyce/Mrs. Kidd), Jennifer Ikeda (as Lady Nijo/Win) and Ana Reeder (as Dull/Gret/Nell).

James Macdonald (Drunk Enough To Say I Love You?, A Number) directs the Broadway debut of this modern classic.

According to MTC, "At the Top Girls Employment Agency in London in the early 1980s, Marlene (Marvel) has just been appointed head of the firm. But as this ambitious career woman celebrates her achievements, can we applaud her values? This bold and ingenious work from the singularly talented author of Far Away and Cloud Nine offers one of the theatre's most honest portraits of what it means to be a woman in the modern world."

The creative team for Top Girls includes Tom Pye (scenic design), Laura Bauer (costume design), Christopher Akerlind (lighting design), Darron L West (sound design), Matthew Herbert (original music) and Elizabeth Smith (dialect consultant).

Mary Beth Hurt has been seen on Broadway in The Secret Rapture, Benefactors (Tony nomination), Crimes of the Heart (Obie Award and Tony nomination), The Misanthrope and Trelawney of the Wells (Tony nomination). Her previous work for MTC includes productions of Humble Boy and The Day Room. On screen Hurt has been seen in "Untraceable," "The Dead Girl," "Lady In The Water," "Exorcism of Emily Rose," "Affliction," "Autumn in New York," "Family Man," "Bringing Out the Dead," "Six Degrees of Separation," "The Age of Innocence," "Red Dragon," "Light Sleeper," "Defenseless," "Slaves of New York," "Parents," "Compromising Positions," "The World According to Garp," "Chilly Scenes of Winter" and "Interiors."

Tickets to Top Girls are available by visiting Telecharge.com or calling (212) 239-6200 or (800) 432-7250.

The Biltmore Theatre is located at 261 West 47th Street, between Broadway and Eighth Avenue. Tickets range in price from $46.50-$91.50. For group ticket information, call (800) 432-7780. Student rush tickets are available the day of the performance at the Biltmore Theatre box office for $26.50.

Visit www.manhattantheatreclub.com.