1999 Tony Award winner Elizabeth Franz (Death of a Salesman) plays Holocaust survivor Lola ready to begin the perfect retired life in Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Donald Margulies' The Model Apartment, closing at the Long Wharf Theatre May 13. The company's artistic director Doug Hughes directs the drama, which opened April 11 on the company's Stage II.

In the Obie-winning play, Lola and Max survived the Nazi annihilation of the Jews but may not make it through their dream retirement in Florida. Their newly peaceful life has been shattered by the arrival of their emotionally-disturbed daughter Debby and her mildly retarded lover Neil. Margulies, a resident of New Haven, where the Long Wharf makes its home, won the 2000 Pulitzer for Dinner With Friends. He is also the author of Sight Unseen, Collected Stories and The Lomand Family Picnic.

Joining Franz are George Coe (Company, Mame) as Max, Roberta Wallach (Down the Garden Paths) as Debby and Corey Parker Robinson ("The Corner") as Neil.

Designing The Model Apartment are Neil Patel (sets), Jess Goldstein (costumes), Michael Chybowski (lighting) and David Van Tieghem (sound).

Tickets are $15-$45. For reservations, call (203) 787-4282.The Long Wharf Theatre is on the web at http://www.longwharf.org. *

In other Long Wharf news, the successful and extended Long Wharf world premiere run of The Mandrake Root broke the Stage II box office record for single ticket sales. Mandrake Root, a semi autobiographical tale by actress Lynn Redgrave and starring the same, sold over $104,000 in non-subscriber tickets. The previous record was set by the world premiere of Daniel Goldfarb's Modern Orthodox.

— By Christine Ehren