Nathan Lane Coming Back to Broadway in THE NANCE; Jack O'Brien to Direct

According to the New York Times, Broadway favorite Nathan Lane will be heading back to Broadway in Douglas Carter Beane's The Nance, a new play about a performer who played the role of the nance in burlesque shows in the early 20th century. Lincoln Center Theater is looking to bring the show to Broadway in spring 2013, with Jack O'Brien attached to direct.

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Beane hosted a private reading of the play in October of 2010 starring Lane, Benjamin Walker, Daphne Rubin-Vega and Kevin Chamberlin.  

Nathan Lane is a two-time Tony and Emmy award-winning stage and screen star. He is best known for his roles as Albert in The Birdcage, Max Bialystock in the musical The Producers, Ernie Smuntz in MouseHunt, Nathan Detroit in Guys and Dolls, Pseudolus in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, and his voice work in The Lion King and Stuart Little. In 2008, he was inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame. He most recently appeared on Broadway in The Addams Family.

Douglas Carter Beane wrote the book for Lysistrata Jones, which received critical acclaim for its New York debut with Transport Group and will open on Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theater on December 14, 2011. Plays: The Little Dog Laughed (TONY and Olivier Nominations for Best Play, GLAAD Media Award), Mr & Mrs Fitch, As Bees in Honey Drown (Outer Critics Circle Gassner Award), Music From a Sparkling Planet, The Country Club, Advice From a Caterpillar, The Cartells, and the upcoming The Nance. Musicals: Xanadu (Outer Critics, HX, Drama Desk award for Best Book, Tony nomination for Best Book), Sister Act (Tony nomination for Best Book), The Big Time, The Bandwagon, and a soon-to-be-announced Rodgers and Hammerstein project. Revues: Mondo Drama and White Lies. Screenplays: Advice From a Caterpillar (Aspen Comedy Festival Best Feature); To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar. As Artistic Director of Drama Dept., he produced more than 40 productions including revivals of As Thousands Cheer, June Moon and The Torchbearers, and world premieres by Paul Rudnick, David Sedaris and Wendy Wasserstein. He resides in NYC with his partner, Lewis Flinn, and their children Cooper and Gabrielle.

O'Brien is a multiple Tony Award winner and nominee, with Best Director wins for The Coast of Utopia, Henry IV, and Hairspray and nominations for Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and The Full Monty. He recently directed the Broadway musical Catch Me If You Can.

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