Cast Complete for EST's Off-Broadway Offering Roulette
By Robert Simonson
30 Dec 2003
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Anna Paquin
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| photo by Aubrey Reuben | Grant Shaud has been added to the cast of Roulette, a new play by screenwriter Paul Weitz that was presented this past August at Vassar College's Powerhouse Theatre and will be produced Off-Broadway by Ensemble Studio Theatre.
He joins the previously announced Anna Paquin, "Saturday Night Live" alum Ana Gasteyer, Proof's Larry Bryggman and Scotland Road's Leslie Lyles for the Off-Broadway run.
Roulette will begin performances at the John Houseman Theatre January 30, 2004, with an official opening scheduled for Feb. 15. The limited engagement ends Feb. 29. Roulette marks EST's first commercial venture. The venerable Off-Broadway nonprofit is famed for its annual one act marathon and for its ensemble, deep with seasoned New York actors and playwrights.
Roulette concerns a suburban father who thinks a good way to stir up his life is with a good round of Russian roulette. Needless to say, there is some fallout. Paquin, who received an Academy Award for her performance in "The Piano," told the New York Times, "I laughed hysterically [when I read the script]. But I laughed at parts in which I wasn't sure I should be laughing." The playwright added, "It's a very dark comedy set in the suburbs . . . A cross between A. R. Gurney and Joe Orton."
Paquin made her stage debut Off-Broadway in Rebecca Gilman's The Glory of Living at the MCC Theatre. Shaud is a regular at EST, having appeared in several marathon plays. He recently acted in Woody Allen's Writer's Block at the Atlantic Theatre Company.
Weitz co-wrote the screenplay to the films "Antz" and "About a Boy" (Oscar nomination) and directed "American Pie" and produced its sequels. Weitz is a scion of an artistic family. His grandparents were film producer and agent Paul Kohner and actress Lupita Tover. His father was fashion designer and novelist John Weitz and his uncle Pancho Kohner another movie producer. His brother Chris produced the "American Pie" series, and co-directed "About a Boy" with Paul.
Craig Bierko starred in the Vassar presentation of Roulette. That cast also included Mark Blum (The Best Man, Lost in Yonkers), Matt Bomer, Merritt Weaver, Carolyn McCormick and Maddie Corman.
The John Houseman Theatre is located at 450 West 42nd Street. Tickets are available by visiting Telecharge.com.
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