Tony nominee Polly Bergen will enter the cast of the Off-Broadway hit The Vagina Monologues Oct. 30 and stay through Dec. 9, a spokesman for Bergen told Playbill On-Line. Bergen's was the one performance uniformly applauded in the recent Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim's Follies. Bergen regularly brought down the house with her rendition of "I'm Still Here," and won a Tony nomination for her work.
With Follies, former film and television star Bergen returned to show business after an absence of many years. He has also resumed her singing, making cabaret appearances in New York at Feinstein's and the Firebird.
Joining Bergen in The Vagina Monologues will be Michele Shay and Didi Conn.
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The twenty-eighth trio of actresses to grace Off-Broadway's long-running hit The Vagina Monologues is composed of Veanne Cox, Marla Gibbs and Lainie Kazan. They began their stay on Sept. 18, replacing Ali Larter, Sandra Oh and Loretta Swit, who departed Sept. 16. Cox just finished her last job as one of the stars of Broadway's The Dinner Party. Prior to that, she has starred in such productions as Company, The Waiting Girl, The Food Chain and The Altruists. Kazan starred in both the film and stage versions of My Favorite Year. When not acting on stage, she has been featured in many of New York's best cabaret spots. Finally, Gibbs is well remembered from such television series as "The Jeffersons."
The three will stay with the show until Oct. 28.
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A complete list of actresses who have appeared in the New York production follows:
Feb. 8-20: Julie Kavner, Swoosie Kurtz and Audra McDonald
Feb. 22-March 5: Mary Alice, Amy Irving and Rosie Perez
March 7-19: Rita Moreno, Cynthia Nixon and Marlo Thomas
March 21-April 2: Shirley Knight, Andrea Martin and Alanis Morissette
April 4-16: Viola Davis, Gina Gershon and Annie Potts
April 18-30: Claire Danes, Jenifer Lewis and Mary McDonnell
May 2-14: Mo Gaffney, Marsha Mason and Lynn Whitfield
May 16-28: Diahann Carroll, Judith Ivey and Marisa Tomei
May 30-June 11: Joy Behar, Hazelle Goodman and Holland Taylor
June 13-15: Linda Ellerbee, Calista Flockhart and Lisa Gay Hamilton
June 27-July 9: Melissa Joan Hart, Carol Kane and Phylicia Rashad
July 11-23: Teri Hatcher, Ricki Lake and Regina Taylor
July 25-Aug. 6: Gloria Reuben, Julia Stiles and Mary Testa
Aug. 8-20: Brett Butler, Kellie Martin and Tonya Pinkins
Aug. 22-Sept. 3: Teri Garr, Julianna Margulies and Sanaa Lathan
Sept. 5-24: Brooke Shields, Mercedes Ruehl and Ana Gasteyer
Sept. 26-Oct. 15: Kathleen Chalfant, Nell Carter and Annabella Sciorra
Oct. 17-Nov. 5: Donna Hanover, Robin Givens, Susie Essman
Nov. 7-Nov. 26: Erica Jong, Angelica Torn, Lauren Velez.
Nov. 28-Dec. 17: Lolita Davidovich, Sarah Jones and Ann Magnuson
Dec. 19-Jan. 7, 2001: Carolee Carmello, Roma Maffia and Rue McClanahan
Jan 9-Feb. 18: Julie Halston, Lisa Leguillou and Lois Smith
Feb. 20-April 1: Becky Ann Baker, Cynthia Garrett and Ruthie Henshall
April 3-May 13: Kim Coles, Judy Gold and Patricia Kalember
May 14-June 24: Katherine Helmond, Joie Lee and Hayley Mills
June 26-Aug. 5: Lisa Kron, Michelle Rodriguez and Jessica Walter
Aug. 7-Sept. 16: Ali Larter, Sandra Oh and Loretta Swit
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Joe Mantello, who staged Love! Valour! Compassion! on Broadway, is the director of the show.
$10 of each $55 ticket sold to The Vagina Monologues goes to the V Day Initiative.
For information on the Westside engagement, call (212) 239-6200.
— By Robert Simonson
