Mary Louise Wilson, lately of Cabaret , will head the cast of the Signature Theatre Company's production of Bosoms and Neglect. Bosoms is the second play in Signature's season-long examination of the work of playwright John Guare. Bosoms will begin Dec. 1 (opening Dec. 13, for a run through Jan. 10, 1999), under the direction of Nicholas Martin, recently tapped to helm Christopher Durang's latest (Betty's Summer Vacation) at Playwrights Horizons. Martin also directed Wilson in her one-person show, Full Gallop .
Wilson will play a domineering though bedridden matriarch. David Aaron Baker and Katie Finneran will also be in the cast. Baker has appeared in New York in Once Upon a Mattress , Blue Window and The Moliere Comedies . Finneran has been seen in Proposals and The Heiress -- both on Broadway.
The original Broadway production of Bosoms starred Kate Reid and lasted three days. Anne Meara appeared in the revival which enjoyed a longer run. In a 1997 interview with Playbill On-Line, playwright Paula Vogel cited Bosoms as one of the more influential and devastating experiences in her years of going to the theatre.
The Signature Theatre Company will conclude its by performing, in repertory, the four plays of the authors "Nantucket" series. The news was announced by Guare himself at a Sept. 14 welcoming ceremony at the Signature, and first reported by the New York Times on Sept. 18. No dates are set, and the whole venture is still pending approval from Actors' Equity, said a spokesman at press rep James Morrison's office.
The "Nantucket" series follows a group of idealistic 19th century characters and their attempts to create a utopian society. The plays include Gardenia , Lydie Breeze , Women in Water and the recently completed The Book of Judith , which will have its premiere at the Signature. The acting company, yet to be cast, will perform all four plays in repertory. Alan Eisenberg, executive director of Equity, said that Signature hasn't yet approached Equity on the matter. "Common sense suggests we'll negotiate a repertory contract with the Signature," he told PBOL. "It's not an unfamiliar concept to us. We have repertory in the LORT [League of Resident Theatres] contract."
For memberships and information on the Signature Theatre season call (212) 244-PLAY.
-- By Robert Simonson and Harry Haun
and David Lefkowitz
