Wit, directed by Lynne Meadow and starring Tony and Emmy Award winner Cynthia Nixon, will begin previews Jan. 5, 2012, and open Jan. 26, 2012, at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre.

The play, according to press notes, "follows a brilliant and exacting poetry professor (Cynthia Nixon) as she undergoes experimental treatment for cancer. A scholar who devoted her life to academia, she must now face the irony and injustice of becoming the subject of research."

The Columnist, directed by Daniel Sullivan and starring Tony and Emmy Award winner John Lithgow, will begin previews April 3, 2012, at the Friedman and open April 25.

"Columnists are kings in midcentury America and Joseph Alsop (John Lithgow) wears the crown," according to MTC. "Joe is beloved, feared and courted in equal measure by the Washington political world at whose center he sits. But as the ’60s dawn and America undergoes dizzying change, the intense political drama Joe is embroiled in becomes deeply personal as well."

Additional casting for both productions will be announced in the coming weeks.

Tickets for Wit, The Columnist and Venus in Fur are available by calling Telecharge at (212) 239-6200, online by visiting www.Telecharge.com or by visiting the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre Box Office (261 West 47th Street). Ticket prices are $57-$116.