March 20 will be a day without underpants — The Underpants, that is, as in the Steve Martin adaptation of late playwright Carl Stenheim's comedy.
The Classic Stage Company production, directed by CSC artistic director Barry Edelstein, delays previews to March 21 to allow late-replacements Lee Wilkof (Kiss Me, Kate, Assassins) and Cheryl Bowers some extra rehearsal time. Wilkof steps in for Fisher Stevens (a producer of "In the Bedroom," off to do his Oscarly duties), while Bowers replaces Heather Goldenhersh, who took a role in a film version of "Nicholas Nickleby" and had to pull out of The Underpants. Opening night is still set for April 4.
The Underpants tells of a man who's mortally embarrassed when his wife's undies fall down during the procession of the King. Two gentlemen notice her predicament — and become immediately smitten with her. The Underpants runs March 20-April 28 at CSC (officially opening April 4). Starring in the show are Patrick Boll, Christian Camargo (Kit Marlowe), William Duell, Byron Jennings (The Man Who Came to Dinner), Kristine Nielsen and Fisher Stevens (Shyster).
Martin, who made it big as a comedian with the album "Let's Get Small" and has been a movie star since "The Jerk" (followed by such pics as "The Man with Two Brains," "Planes, Trains and Automobiles," "Father of the Bride" and "Pennies From Heaven") made theatrical waves as a playwright in the 1990s with his comedy Picasso at the Lapin Agile and one-acts. The past couple of years have seen him return to Hollywood and concentrate on films, his art collection and numerous comic essays for the New Yorker, as well as a novella, "Shopgirl."
Playwright Sternheim was born in 1878 in Leipzig. After studying philosophy he co-founded "Hyperion" literary magazine and went on to write such plays as The Cassette and The Snob. After encountering moral outrage over some of his writing, Sternheim moved to Brussels and lived there until his death in 1942. Designing The Underpants are Scott Pask (set), Angela Wendt (costumes), Elizabeth Rhodes (sound) and Russell H. Champa (lighting).
For tickets and information on The Underpants at CSC, 136 East 13th St., call (212) 677-4210, ext. 2.
— By Christine Ehren
