NY's Joseph Papp Public Theater has postponed its planned production of Michael John LaChiusa's new musical, The Wild Party . Press rep Carol Fineman told Playbill On-Line that casting considerations were behind the decision.

The tuner, to be directed by George C. Wolfe and choreographed by Joey McKneely, had been announced as beginning previews Feb. 4, 1999. Wolfe and McKneely will continue with the project, said Fineman, who added that the show might reappear in the spring.

Wolfe and McKneely recently worked together on the costly Broadway revival of the musical On the Town , which opened Nov. 22 to mixed-to-positive reviews.

Wild Party is based on a poem by Joseph Moncure March about a debauched party in 1920s Hollywood. The material was also adapted into a 1975 James Ivory film starring James Coco (as a Fatty Arbuckle-type star) and Raquel Welch.

LaChiusa (The First Lady Suite , The Petrified Prince ) gained a cult following with his Hello Again Off-Broadway and Chronicle of a Death Foretold on Broadway. He's also currently collaborating with director-choreographer Graciela (Ragtime ) Daniele on the Broadway-bound Marie Christine , which is described as "a quasi operatic version of Medea, set in 1880s New Orleans and Chicago." For more information on shows at NYSF/the Public Theater call (212) 260 2400.