By Andrew Gans
12 May 2008

Alan Alda
photo by Aubrey Reuben

The World Science Festival will present the world premiere of Dear Albert, which was penned by Emmy Award winner Alan Alda.

Anthony LaPaglia will star in the one-night-only presentation June 1 at 7 PM at Columbia University's Miller Theatre. Tony Award winner Daniel Sullivan directs.

Dear Albert, according to press notes, "delves into the treasure trove of letters written by Einstein, tracing an intimate and unfamiliar line across his life and work. Unquestionably one of the greatest – if not the greatest – mind of the 20th century, Einstein was as celebrated for his wit as for his Theory of Relativity. Dear Albert humanizes a giant in the pantheon of great scientists and sheds light upon his momentous scientific insights through first-hand accounts of groundbreaking discoveries."

In a statement writer-actor Alda said, "As I read through his letters, I was fascinated by him. This was the voice of Albert at his most intimate and passionate as he was courting his first wife, his second wife and a number of other women. At the same time, he was just as passionate about courting the cosmos. And the cosmos often came out ahead."

Alan Alda was Tony-nominated for his performances in Jake's Women and The Apple Tree. A Theatre World Award winner for his work in Fair Game for Lovers, his other Broadway credits include Only in America, Purlie Victorious, Cafe Crown, The Owl and the Pussycat, Art and QED.

A favored director of such playwrights as Donald Margulies and the late Wendy Wasserstein, Daniel Sullivan — represented on Broadway this past season with the revival of The Homecoming — has been nominated for six Tony Awards for Direction of a Play, and won for David Auburn's Proof in 2001. His other Broadway credits include Prelude to a Kiss, Rabbit Hole, Julius Caesar (with Denzel Washignton), Brooklyn Boy, Sight Unseen, The Retreat From Moscow, Morning’s at Seven, Major Barbara, A Moon for the Misbegotten, Ah, Wilderness!, An American Daughter, The Sisters Rosensweig, Conversations With My Father, The Heidi Chronicles and I'm Not Rappaport.

Anthony LaPaglia won a Tony Award for his performance in the Broadway revival of A View from the Bridge. He made his Broadway debut in The Rose Tattoo, earning a Theatre World Award for his work.

Columbia University's Miller Theatre is located in Manhattan at 2960 Broadway at 116th Street. Tickets, priced $40, are available by visiting www.worldsciencefestival.com.

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The first annual World Science Festival, a celebration of scientific discovery, will take place throughout New York City May 28-June 1 and will "bring together over a dozen Nobel Laureates, leading researchers, top-level technologists, dedicated educators, and high-level policy makers with creative artists, filmmakers, and performers to create more than 40 unique events that will shine a spotlight on science and explore the many ways in which scientific discovery and innovation are shaping modern life."