An Off-Broadway showcase of the play, directed by Valentina Fratti, got some friendly reviews. Its run ends Feb. 11 at ArcLight Theater.
Capitalization for a reconstituted commercial run in spring is at $650,000.
Actor and playwright Daniels' Apartment 3A has been seen regionally beginning with a run at his own Equity troupe, Purple Rose Theatre Company, in Chelsea, MI. The ArcLight run marked its New York City premiere. Performances began Jan. 20 toward a Jan. 23 opening.
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Lisa Dozier, Traci Klainer and M2 present the romantic comedy. In the play, "Annie Wilson is having a bad day. After she catches her boyfriend in an acrobatic act of infidelity, she then has a televised melt-down during her job running telethons on the local PBS station. With her world turned upside down, and her faith in mankind shaken, she moves into a shabby apartment. But beyond the peeling paint and the lousy view, Apartment 3A may be the most magical move Annie has ever made."
It's billed "a treasure trove of quiet and humorous revelations" as Annie "confronts her fears and opens her heart to an unexpected suitor."
The cast includes Amy Landecker (Off Broadway's Bug; Big Love at BAM) as Annie Wilson, and features Jonathan Cooke, J Austin Eyer, Arian Moayed (Homebody/Kabul at BAM) and Joseph Collins (Bug).
Jeff Daniels is the well-known film and stage actor currently seen in the feature film, "The Squid and the Whale" (for which he was Golden Globe nominated). His movie credits include "Terms of Endearment," "Purple Rose of Cairo," "Gettysburg," "Dumb and Dumber," "Fly Away Home," "Pleasantville," "The Hours" and "Gods and Generals."
Daniels was a member of the prestigious Circle Rep, and first distinguished himself as an actor with his theatrical roles. He originated the role of Jed Jenkins in the Off-Broadway premiere of Fifth of July, which subsequently transferred to Broadway. Other Broadway credits include Redwood Curtain and The Golden Age. He won an Obie Award and received a Drama Desk Award nomination for the Off Broadway play Johnny Got His Gun. Daniels founded an Equity company, Purple Rose, in his hometown of Chelsea, MI, and it is one of the state's most respected and popular institutions. A prolific playwright with a taste for quirky comedy, he has written nine plays for the Purple Rose, including Shoe Man, The Tropical Pickle, Thy Kingdom's Coming, Across the Way (a 2002 finalist for the American Theatre Critics Association National Award for Best New Play), Norma & Wanda, The Vast Difference, Escanaba in da Moonlight, Apartment 3A and Boom Town, the last four of which are published by Dramatists Play Service.
His latest, Guest Artist, just opened in Chelsea. This winter, Norma & Wanda will begin a commercial run in downtown Detroit at the Gem Theatre.
He wrote, acted, and directed the Purple Rose Films' version of Escanaba in da Moonlight and Super Sucker (awarded Best Comedy at the 2001 U.S. Comedy Film Festival in Aspen, CO).
Director Valentina Fratti most recently was assistant director for Doug Hughes on Rebecca Gilman's adaptation of The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter for the Acting Company, presented at the Alliance in Atlanta. She also worked on Gilman's Blue Surge at the Public Theater, where she was assistant director for Robert Falls. At the Miranda Theatre, which she co-founded and serves as artistic director, she directed Near Normal, Harry and Sam Dialogues, Innocent Thoughts, Black Elvis, Prostitutki and The Book of Wren.
With Jane Harmon Associates, she was part of the team that brought Sam Shepard's Buried Child to Broadway and was the associate producer for Alfred Uhry's Tony Award winning play The Last Night of Ballyhoo.
The design team includes lights by Traci Klainer, sets by Lauren Helpern and costumes by David Newell.
ArcLight Theater is at 152 W. 71st Street, between Broadway and Columbus. The performance schedule is Thursday–Saturday at 8 PM; Sunday and Monday at 7 PM. Tickets are $15, and are available by calling Theatermania at (212) 352-0255 or online at www.theatermania.com. For more information, visit www.Apartment3A.com.
