Sam Mendes directs the Hare work, which opens Nov. 30 for a limited 20-week run. Scott Rudin, Robert Fox, Neal Street Productions, Roger Berlind, Debra Black and The Shubert Organization produce.
In The Vertical Hour, Hare spins the tale of an American television journalist and academic, "who travels abroad and finds herself caught in an emotionally charged romantic triangle, pulled between the affections of her lover and lover's father," as a release describes.
Joining Moore and Nighy in the cast are Andrew Scott (The Royal Court's A Girl in a Car With a Man, "Saving Private Ryan"), Dan Bittner (The House In Town) and Rutina Wesley ("Hitch," "Step").
Film actress Moore has earned four Academy Award nominations for her work in "The Hours" (a Hare screenplay), "Boogie Nights," "Far From Heaven" and "The End of the Affair." Other film work includes "The Shipping News," "Evolution," "Hannibal," "An Ideal Husband," "Magnolia," "The Big Lebowski" and the forthcoming "Children of Men" and "Savage Grace." Her stage credits include Vanya on 42nd Street Off-Broadway as well as Surviving Picasso, Serious Money and Ice Cream With Hot Fudge.
An acclaimed British star, Nighy is known for his film work on such movies as "Love Actually," "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest" and "The Constant Gardener" as well as the lauded HBO film "The Girl in the Café." Upcoming turns include "Notes on a Scandal" and a voice on the animated feature "Flushed Away." He has trod the boards for Hare previously in A Map of the World and Skylight. Other stage credits include Pravda, King Lear, Arcadia, Blue/Orange, Betrayal, A Kind of Alaska and The Seagull. Hare's drama based on the Bush administration's leadup to the Iraq war, Stuff Happens, appeared Off-Broadway last season at The Public Theater. Other works of the scribe include Amy’s View, The Blue Room, Plenty, The Secret Rapture, Racing Demon, The Judas Kiss and Via Dolorosa.
Director Mendes is known to Broadway audiences for his work on the Tony Award-winning revival of Cabaret as well as his staging of Gypsy starring Bernadette Peters. He has also enjoyed an accomplished film career, having directed (to Academy Award success) his feature debut "American Beauty." Other works include "Road to Perdition," "Jarhead" and a forthcoming documentary centering on Rufus Wainwright's re-creation of Judy Garland's 1961 Carnegie Hall concert.
The design team for The Vertical Hour features Scott Pask (scenery), Ann Roth (costumes), Brian MacDevitt (lighting) and Chris Cronin (sound).
Tickets to The Vertical Hour at The Music Box Theatre, 239 West 45 Street, are available by calling (212) 239-6200.
