Hartford Stage announced the temporary casting change late Sept. 17. Davis had been scheduled to take the lead role for select student matinees, but now fills in for Holbrook who "has developed a virus due to exhaustion and is under a doctor's care," according to a release. The star is expected to return to the production Sept. 25 and continue the remainder of the run through Oct. 6.
Davis has performed at Hartford Stage in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, A Christmas Carol, 365 Days 365 Plays and in a number of Brand:NEW readings. A University of Hartford professor of Acting, Voice and Speech, he had been part of the Our Town ensemble in the role of Constable Warren. Playing his part for the week will be Rob Pawlikowski.
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Gregory Boyd staged the season opener for the Connecticut company, which began performances Aug. 30 and opened Sept. 7 for a limited run through Oct. 6.
Joining Holbrook as the Stage Manager are Josie de Guzman (Guys and Dolls) as Mrs. Gibbs, Annalee Jefferies (What Didn't Happen) as Mrs. Webb and Donovan Patton ("Blue's Clues") as George Gibbs. Also part of the cast are Ross Bickell (as Dr. Gibbs), Jake Lombardi (Joe Crowell), Bill Kux (Howie Newsome), Erin Courtney (Rebecca Gibbs), Jordan Cyr and Andrew Shipman (both in the role of Wally Webb), Ginna Carter (Emily Webb), Nafe Katter (Professor Willard), Frank Converse (Mr. Webb), Noble Shropshire (Simon Stimson), Charlotte Booker (Mrs. Soames) and Robert Hannon Davis (Constable Warren).
The ensemble also includes Jessi Ehrlich, Justin Fuller, Brock Harris, Joseph Kornfeld, Tom Libonate, Rob Pawlikowski, Denise Walker and Debra Walsh.
Holbrook has a history with the Grover's Corners, New Hampshire-set Our Town. He played the role of the Stage Manager for the 1977 television version opposite Ned Beatty, Barbara Bel Geddes and more.
Holbrook made his Broadway debut in Do You Know the Milky Way? and has since appeared in After the Fall, Marco Millions, Incident at Vichy, Tartuffe, The Glass Menagerie, Man of La Mancha, The Apple Tree, I Never Sang for My Father, Does a Tiger Wear a Necktie? and An American Daughter. He won a 1966 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for his solo show Mark Twain Tonight!, which he also reprised on Broadway in 1977 and 2005. Holbrook has appeared in the films "All the President's Men," "Julia," "Wall Street," "The Firm," "Men of Honor" and "The Majestic."
Tickets for Our Town at Hartford Stage, 50 Church Street in downtown Hartford, CT, are available by calling (860) 527-5151. For more information visit hartfordstage.org.
