George Bernard Shaw's You Never Can Tell will come to the Off Broadway Laura Pels space May 27, opening June 21 for a run through Sept. 13.
Robert Sean Leonard stars, alongside Tony nominee Helen Carey (London Assurance) and Simon Jones, who just finished a brief run in The Herbal Bed. Jones' other New York credits include Privates on Parade and Private Lives.
As for next season at the Roundabout, nothing's been set, though reports have cropped up that The Lion In Winter, cancelled this season, is back on the front burner, with Lawrence Fishburne in talks to star.
Another strong candidate is Paula Vogel's The Mineola Twins. A production spokesperson confirmed that a reading of Twins was done in early winter, one that starred Annette Benning (Coastal Disturbances) and Jane Kazmarek (Kindertransport). Vogel is the author of The Baltimore Waltz and How I Learned To Drive, which won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama Apr. 14.
Back in December 1996, Playbill On-Line reported that New York's Roundabout Theatre Company was in negotiations to present Martin Short in a revival of the 1962 musical Little Me in the 1997-98 season. We were a season off, but according to the New York Times (Mar. 27) and confirmed by spokesperson Erin Dunn (of Boneau/Bryan-Brown), the show will definitely happen in the fall. Though at the time, the Roundabout was seeking director Walter Bobbie (Chicago) to stage the revival, Little Me will instead be helmed by Rob Marshall, who co-directed the Roundabout's current -- and sensationally reviewed -- Cabaret revival. Marshall told the times, "[Little Me] is one of those plays that's rarely done because it has to be done for somebody. There has to be a star to build it around... We're fortunate that we still have Neil [Simon] and Cy [Coleman] with us, and they'll be working with us and tailoring it for Marty [Short]."
Short, comedy star of "SCTV," "Saturday Night Live" and the film Father of the Bride and Three Amigos, would play the roles originated by Sid Caesar and recreated in the 1980s by Victor Garber. Short's legit credits include The Goodbye Girl and Encores!' Promises, Promises.
Though the show's central character is a woman, "Belle Poitrine," all the wildly different men she meets in her highly eventful life are played by same actor, making it a tour-de-force for a male comedy performer.
1962's Little Me has music by Coleman (City of Angels, Sweet Charity, The Will Rogers Follies), lyrics by Carolyn Leigh and book by Simon.
Songs in Little Me include "I've Got Your Number," "Real Live Girl" and "Be A Performer."
Short made his Broadway debut in another Neil Simon musical, the short lived 1993 The Goodbye Girl. Other Simon plays include Proposals, Laughter on the 23rd Floor, The Sunshine Boys and Fools.
Other recent Roundabout musical revivals include 1776, She Loves Me and Company.
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As for current Roundabout shows, A Flea In Her Ear ends at the Laura Pels May 3, The Deep Blue Sea finishes on the mainstage May 10, Cabaret runs at the Kit Kat Klub, and A View From The Bridge plays at the Neil Simon Theatre. -- By David Lefkowitz and Robert Viagas
