THE MISANTHROPE Begins Previews at the Pearl Theatre Company, 1/14

THE Pearl Theatre Company (J.R. Sullivan, Artistic Director; Shira Beckerman, Managing Director) proudly presents Molière's wryly personal comedy, The Misanthrope, translated into English verse by the renowned and prolific Richard Wilbur. The production begins performances on January 14 at New York City Center Stage II and is directed by the former Artistic Director of Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Joseph Hanreddy.  The Misanthrope is supported by The Florence Gould Foundation and the Grand Marnier Foundation. Tickets are currently on sale through CityTix® and at nycitycenter.org.

The Misanthrope satirizes the hypocrisies of French aristocratic society, chronicling an eventful day in the unstable love-life of the petulant Alceste and a flirtatious young gossip, Célimène, and the many fops and fools flitting in and out of her fashionable salon.

"The Pearl is thrilled to have the beautiful language of Molière's immortal comedy on our stage," said Artistic Director J.R. Sullivan. "We are happy to welcome Resident Actor Sean McNall back to our stage for the first time this season, as Alceste the misanthrope, and we are also excited to have so many talented young actors in the cast of this marvelous ensemble-driven play."

The Cast

The Misanthrope features two members of the Pearl's Resident Acting Company. Dominic Cuskern (Basque and Dubois), most recently played Mortensgaard in The Pearl's production Rosmersholm. He has been a member of the Resident Company since 2000. Sean McNall returns to The Pearl's stage having worked on Broadway this fall understudying for T.R. Knight in A Life in the Theatre. McNall appeared last season at The Pearl in The Playboy of the Western World, Misalliance, and Hard Times.  Joining The Misanthrope are six guest actors, including Matthew Amendt (Acaste) who made his Pearl Theatre debut last spring as Timmy Cleary in The Subject Was Roses. He was seen this summer at the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival and has worked extensively at the Guthrie Theater, where he studied acting. The rest of the cast are newcomers at The Pearl. Janie Brookshire (Célimène) has been seen on Broadway in The Philanthropist at Roundabout Theatre Company and, recently off-Broadway, in Wife to James Whelan at the Mint Theater Company. Shawn Fagan (Philinte) appeared with Brookshire in Wife to James Whelan at the Mint Theater Company and has worked regionally with the Denver Center, Arena Stage, and the Utah Shakespearean Festival. Patrick Halley (Clitandre) was seen this past summer at the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival in The Bomb-Itty of Errors and Troilus and Cressida. Robin LeMon (Eliante) has worked extensively at theatres in New York City including The Public Theater, Classical Theatre of Harlem, and the National Black Theatre. Kern McFadden (Oronte and a guard) has appeared in New York and regionally with the Irish Repertory Theatre, The Old Globe, the La Jolla Playhouse, and the Utah Shakespearean Festival. Rounding out the cast is Joey Parsons (Arsinoe), who has been seen at Yale Rep, Hartford TheaterWorks, and the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival.

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