Hosted by Jeremy McCarter with narration by Michael Riedel, the evening at the Players Club is scheduled to feature the talents of George S. Irving as Roebuck Ramsden (& The Statue), Euan Morton as Octavius Robinson, Michael Cerveris as John Tanner (& Don Juan), Kerry Butler as Ann Whitefield (& Dona Ana de Ulloa), Jackie Hoffman as Mrs. Whitefield, KT Sullivan as Miss Ramsden, Elena Shaddow as Violet Robinson, Matthew Arkin as Henry Straker, Noah Racey as Hector Malone, Marc Kudisch as Mendoza (& The Devil) and Nick Wyman as Mr. Malone. David Staller directs the 7:30 PM reading.
Man and Superman, one of Shaw's most celebrated and devilishly witty plays, is described as such: "The play's hero, the roguish Jack Tanner, is bent on pursuing his own spiritual development in accordance with this philosophy. Believing marriage would prevent him from achieving his higher intellectual and political ambitions, Tanner is horrified to discover that his newly appointed ward, Ann Whitefield, intends to marry him. He flees to Spain with Ann in hot pursuit. The chase even leads them to the underworld, where the characters' alter egos discuss questions of human nature and philosophy in a lively debate in a scene often performed separately as 'Don Juan in Hell'. In Man and Superman, Shaw combined seriousness with comedy to create a satirical and buoyant exposé of the eternal struggle between the sexes."
The Project Shaw series is produced and directed by Staller, who acted with Dana Ivey in Shaw's Mrs. Warren's Profession at the Irish Repertory Theatre. Dates stretching throughout 2007 and beyond will provide an airing of every sketch, full-length and one-act play by the playwright.
Past participants include Blair Brown, Tyne Daly, Jonathan Hadary, Daniel Jenkins, Rebecca Luker, Michael Cerveris, Karen Ziemba, Michele Pawk, Bruce Vilanch, Jack Gilpin and George S. Irving.
The Players Club is located in Manhattan at 16 Gramercy Park South. Tickets, priced $15, are available by calling (212) 352-3101. For more information visit www.projectshaw.com.
