Cariou will be joined onstage by Roberta Maxwell as Attosa, Brennan Brown as Herald and Michael Stuhlbarg as Xerxes, and the chorus will comprise Jon Devries, Ed Dixon, Herb Foster, Michael Potts, Henry Stram, Henry Strozier and Charles Turner. As previously announced, Ethan McSweeny will helm the production. Preview and opening dates are expected imminently.

An early play loosely based on the Persian Wars, The Persians concentrates on the demise of the Persian empire, including the folly of Xerxes, which caused the empire's downfall. The play also includes the appearance — as a ghost — of Xerxes' father Darius, who declaims the ruin of his once-great empire.

Len Cariou won a Tony Award for his performance in the title role of Stephen Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd. He also received Tony nominations for his work in Applause and A Little Night Music. Cariou’s other Broadway credits include Proof, The Dinner Party, Teddy & Alice, Dance a Little Closer, Cold Storage, Don’t Call Back, Night Watch and King Henry V.

The National Actors Theatre most recently presented Al Pacino in The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui, Oct. 3-Nov. 10, 2002. Others in that star studded cast included Billy Crudup, Chazz Palminteri, Paul Giamatti, John Goodman, Steve Buscemi and the theatre's founder, Tony Randall.

Pace University's Michael Schimmel Center for the Arts is located on Spruce Street between Park Row and Gold Street. Ticket information will also soon be announced.