The New York premiere of Rebecca Gilman's Blue Surge, directed by Robert Falls, will officially open at The Public Theater April 21, after previews from April 9. The cast includes Steve Key, Amy Landecker, Rachel Miner, Joe Murphy and Colleen Werthmann.
Blue Surge was staged by Goodman Theatre artistic director Robert Falls (Death of a Salesman) at the Albert Ivar Goodman Theatre in Chicago, June 29-Aug. 5, 2001. The punning title of Blue Surge (blue serge is a type of suit, once a staple of every man's closet) ostensibly refers to two underground policemen in the drama, who arrest two "massage parlor workers" in a small Midwestern town. During the interrogation of the suspects, however, the four discover they went to high school together and associated with the same group of people. The ensuing revelations cause one of the cops to question his role in the arrest.
Actors Steve Key and Rachel Miner appeared in the Goodman staging of Blue Surge. Murphy's Broadway credits include Closer (standby for Rupert Graves) and The Homecoming (Joey understudy). Off-Broadway, he appeared in The Dead Eye Boy at MCC. Werthmann (Heather) performed her solo show, She Hates Her Supervisor in Joe's Pub at The Public Theater. Landecker is a Chicago-based actress who has appeared on many of that city's stages.
Designers are Walt Spangler (set), Birgit Rattenborg Wise (costume), Michael Philippi (lighting) and Richard Woodbury (sound).
* Gilman's racism-themed Spinning Into Butter created a sensation when it premiered in the Goodman Studio in 1999, winning a Joseph Jefferson Award for Best New Work.The play received its New York premiere at Lincoln Center Theater. Boy Gets Girl premiered at The Goodman in 2000, winning a Jeff Award for Best New Work. The production was remounted at Manhattan Theatre Club. Gilman's other plays include Crime of the Century and The Glory of Living.
Blue Surge tickets are $45. The Public Theater is at 425 Lafayette Street in Manhattan. For information, call (212) 239 6200 or visit www.publictheater.org.
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Since Gilman debuted in New York with Spinning Into Butter at Lincoln Center Theater, her work has rarely been absent from Gotham stages. Subsequent productions include Boy Gets Girl at Manhattan Theatre Club and The Glory of Living at MCC.
—By Robert Simonson
and Kenneth Jones
