CHARLES BUSCH'S CLEOPATRA Will Play Theater for the New City This Spring

Charles Busch will return to Theater for the New City (Crystal Field, Executive Artistic Director) this spring with his new comedy Charles Busch's CLEOPATRA for a limited premiere showcase engagement at Theater for the New City's Community Theater (155 First Avenue). The premiere production, directed by Busch's longtime collaborator Carl Andress (The Tribute Artist, Judith of Bethulia, The Divine Sister) will play a limited engagement of 22 performances fromFriday, March 25 through April 17, 2016.

Following in the footsteps of Sarah Bernhardt, Tallulah Bankhead, Claudette Colbert, Vivien Leigh, and Elizabeth Taylor, Charles Busch gives us his own original, outrageous, majestic, and bawdy interpretation of the fabled Egyptian queen. History shall be portrayed... and made!

Busch returns to Theater for the New City following the 2010 premiere of The Divine Sister, which Daryl Roth transferred for a record-breaking and highly acclaimed Off-Broadway run, and 2012's Judith of Bethulia. Both productions, directed by Andress, became immediate sold out hits for the landmark downtown theater. In December, Busch and Andress brought the 17th edition of the staged reading of Times Square Angel, which has become an annual holiday tradition for Theater for the New City.

The creative team for Charles Busch's CLEOPATRA includes: Scenic and Graphic Design byB.T. Whitehill, Costume Design by Jessica Jahn, Lighting Design by Zach Blane, Sound Design by Bart Fasbender, and Wig Design by Katherine Carr.

Additional casting for Charles Busch's CLEOPATRA will be announced in the coming weeks.

Charles Busch's CLEOPATRA will rehearse at Theater for the New City prior to starting performances at the venue's Community Theater on Friday, March 25.

Tickets for CLEOPATRA are on sale now via SmartTix.com or by calling 212-868-4444. All tickets are $25 and seating is general admission.

CHARLES BUSCH (Playwright, Cleopatra). is the author and star of such plays as The Divine Sister, Vampire Lesbians of Sodom, The Tribute Artist and The Tale of the Allergist's Wife, which ran for nearly two years on Broadway and received a Tony nomination for Best Play. He wrote and starred in the film versions of his plays, Psycho Beach Party and Die Mommie Die, the latter of which won him the Best Performance Award at the Sundance Film Festival. In 2003, Mr. Busch received a special Drama Desk Award for career achievement as both performer and playwright. He is also the subject of the acclaimed documentary film The Lady in Question is Charles Busch. He is a two-time MAC award winner and has performed his cabaret act in many cities including San Francisco, Provincetown, New Orleans, Atlanta, Philadelphia, London, Paris and in New York at the Ballroom, Birdland and 54 Below. His website is charlesbusch.com

CARL ANDRESS (Director). CARL ANDRESS' directing credits include the world premieres of Charles Busch's critically acclaimed plays, The Tribute Artist, The Divine Sister, The Third Story, Judith of Bethulia, Bunnicula, Queen Amarantha and Shanghai Moon, as well as the New York production Die! Mommie Die! and the annual Times Square Angel at Theater for the New City. Other select credits include Carmen Pelaez's Rum & Coke, Douglas Carter Beane's The Cartells, Joe Godfrey's Romance Language, and regional productions of The Tale of the Allergist's Wife, Paul Rudnick's I Hate Hamlet, and Crush the Infamous Thing - The Adventures of the Hollywood Four. Carl staged the NY concert premieres of The Visit, A Wonderful Life, Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol and Valley of the Dolls all to benefit The Actors Fund. Carl has also directed productions of Tenderloin, Harold & Maude, I Love My Wife and The Mad Show for the York Theatre's "Musicals in Mufti" series, as well as Here's to the Girls! and Being Comden & Green for the 92Y's "Lyrics and Lyricists" series. His website is carlandress.com

Photo Credit: David Rodgers