Frederick Weller Joins the Cast of CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF Off-Broadway

Obie and Drama Desk Award winner Frederick Weller (To Kill a Mockingbird, "In Plain Sight") will join Ruth Stage's provocative and controversial modern staging of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof as 'Big Daddy.' An 8x Broadway veteran, Mr. Weller is also known for originating the role of 'Shane Mungitt' in Take Me Out which debuted on Broadway in February of 2003 at the Walter Kerr Theatre.

Ruth Stage's Cat on a Hot Tin Roof returns to the Theatre at St. Clement's (423 W 46th Street) after a hit off-Broadway premiere run last summer. The original 35 performance run was the first time in history that the Tennessee Williams estate had granted permission for the show to be staged off-Broadway.

"We couldn't be more excited to have Fred in the role," added director Joe Rosario. "One of the strengths of our last production was out of the box casting and an effective re-imagining of this play. Mr. Weller's gravitas, intensity and ability to adapt makes him not only a stellar addition to our cast but the quintessential 'Big Daddy' for our modern interpretation of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof."

Mr. Weller will be joined by previously announced leads: Courtney Henggeler ("Cobra Kai" series regular) in her New York City stage debut as the central role of 'Maggie the Cat,' and Matt de Rogatis who will reprise his critically acclaimed role as 'Brick'.

This landmark production will be helmed by returning director Joe Rosario and his creative team which features Matt Imhoff as the set designer, Christian Specht as the lighting designer and Jesse Meckl as the stage manager. Casting is by Ruth Stage.

Ruth Stage's off-Broadway premiere of the Tennessee Williams masterpiece concluded its run on August 14, 2022, playing to sold out audiences and standing ovations. On the heels of the show's success, the Tennessee Williams estate has issued an unprecedented re-engagement license to the maverick theatre group.

Performances of Ruth Stage's Cat on a Hot Tin Roof are set to begin on Friday, February 24, 2023, ahead of an opening night set for Sunday, March 5, 2023. This strictly-limited 42 performance re-engagement will run through Friday, March 31, 2023.

Tennessee Williams' sultry, southern storm of a play about greed, deceit, self-delusion, sexual desire and repression, homophobia, sexism, and the looming specter of death won the Pulitzer Prize in 1955. Ruth Stage's modern and haunting interpretation is set in an estate in the Mississippi Delta of Big Daddy Pollitt, a wealthy cotton tycoon. The play examines the relationships among members of Big Daddy's highly dysfunctional family, primarily between his son Brick and Maggie the Cat, Brick's wife.

The production is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc.


BIOGRAPHIES

COURTNEY HENGGELER

(Maggie) stars as 'Amanda LaRusso' on the global hit Netflix series, "Cobra Kai", the much-buzzed reboot of The Karate Kid, which is in its fifth season on Netflix. For her work on the series, Henggeler has been hailed as a "natural screen comic" by The Hollywood Reporter and the "season's MVP" by Entertainment Weekly. Upcoming, she will star in George Clooney-directed The Boys in the Boat opposite Joel Edgerton. Based on #1 New York Times bestselling author Daniel James Brown's 2013 book of the same name, the film tells the triumphant underdog story of the University of Washington men's rowing team, who stunned the world by winning gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Henggeler will play Hazel Ulbrickson, the wife of Edgerton's Coach Ulbrickson. Henggeler has made many memorable television appearances, including as 'Missy', the twin sister of Jim Parson's 'Sheldon', on CBS's smash hit "The Big Bang Theory"; recurred as 'Claudia' on CBS's "Mom" opposite Anna Faris and Allison Janney; plus The CW's "Jane The Virgin", Netflix's "Fuller House", Hulu's crime drama "Into The Dark", Fox's long-running hit "Bones", ABC's comedy series "Happy Endings", and many more. For film, she has appeared in Friends With Benefits opposite Mila Kunis and Justin Timberlake; and Tyler Perry's Nobody's Fool starring Tiffany Haddish and Tika Sumpter. Also an emerging producer and screenwriter, she recently made her debut as writer and executive producer with the Lifetime original movie, The Secret Life of a Celebrity Surrogate. She continues to develop projects for television and film. Henggeler lives on Long Island with her husband and two children.

Matt de Rogatis

(Brick). Some previous New York City credits for Matt de Rogatis include 'Frederick Clegg' in the United States premiere of The Collector at 59E59, 'Richard III' in Austin Pendleton's Wars of the Roses (124 Bank Street Theater), 'Tom' in The Glass Menagerie (Wild Project), and 'Roy' in Lone Star (Triad). He was last seen on stage as 'Brick' in Ruth Stage's summer 2022 off-Broadway premiere of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (Theatre at St. Clement's). Find Matt on social media @themightydero and www.mattderogatis.com

Frederick Weller's

(Big Daddy) extensive theater work includes eight principal roles on Broadway (including Bob Ewell in To Kill a Mockingbird, Shane Mungit in the original Take Me Out and Williamson in Glengarry Glen Ross opposite Alan Alda and Liev Schreiber), as well as twelve principal roles off-Broadway (including 4 roles for playwright Neil LaBute). He has received an Ensemble Obie Award, an Ensemble Drama Desk Award, two Drama Desk nominations, and two Lucille Lortel nominations. Outside of New York, Frederick is probably best known for his role as Marshall Mann on the series "In Plain Sight" (USA Network), which ran five seasons from 2007-2012. His many other film and TV credits include Spike Lee's BlacKkKlansman, Steven Soderbergh's Mosaic (HBO), and the mini-series "The Beach Boys: An American Family". He can currently be seen in Apple TV's Causeway with Jennifer Lawrence and Peacock's The Independent with John Cena.

Joe Rosario

(Director) is a writer, producer, actor and director from the New York City area. As an actor he has appeared on "The Sopranos", "Ed", "Law and Order", "Sex and the City", "Law and Order SVU", "Oz", "100 Centre St", "Hope and Faith", and the original pilot "Thunderbox". Joe has also appeared numerous times on "The Chappelle Show" and "The View" in various comedic skits and was a re-occurring character on the "Late Show with David Letterman". He has also appeared in over 50 commercials. Rosario is also an award-winning filmmaker and producer. His films and scripts have been official selections at over 50 festivals including Cannes, Barcelona and the New York International Film Festival. His feature length drama, Snapshot, starring Zach McGowan of "Shameless", was one of his winning submissions. A resident of New Jersey, Joe is also an accomplished acting teacher and he coaches many actors seen on TV and film. Rosario directed the summer 2022 off-Broadway premiere of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof at the Theatre at St. Clement's in New York City.

Matt Imhoff

(Set Design) is an award-winning scenic and lighting designer, and the resident scenic designer for Ruth Stage. He designed the critically acclaimed off-Broadway production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof this past summer at Theatre at St. Clement's. Additional Off Broadway: soot and spit (New York Times Critics Pick), Love and Yogurt: A Modest Proposal (world premiere, Cherry Lane Theatre), A Little Princess (US Premiere), Disney's High School Musical, Frankenstein. Additional NYC: Danny and the Deep Blue Sea, Rabbit Hole, Proof, Hamlet. US National Tour: A Charlie Brown Christmas, Live! Regional: Stephen Temperley's A Christmas Carol (premiere): Crazy For You, Anna in the Tropics; Boston Lyric Opera; Opera Naples. www.matthewimhoff.viewbook.com


JESSE MECKL

(Stage Manager) is a graduate of the New School for Drama (2018), who earned a Dramatic Arts degree with an emphasis on directing, acting, and stage management. Jesse has enjoyed working in all three disciplines to add his voice to this community of artists. His favorite productions include: A Midsummer Night's Dream (The New School for Drama), Echoes of Ebola (ASM: Playwrights Horizons), Fabuloso (Theatre Row), The Land of Cheesecake and Ice Cream (Theatre Row), KATIE (Theatre for the New City), and Wars of the Roses: Henry VI & Richard III (Bank Street Theatre & Theatre for the New City). He's thrilled to be RETURNING to Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, and is extremely grateful to be a part of this ensemble. @JTFreckle96

Christian Specht

(Lighting Design). Ragtime, The Music Man, Crazy for You, Hello Dolly, Bright Star, Cabaret (SSTI); Engineers Not Found (Honest Accomplice Theatre); Duets of Difference (Creative Traffic Flow); Peter and the Starcatcher, 1776, Freaky Friday, Children of Eden (Samford University); Turn of the Screw (VST), Glen Campbell, The Manhattan Transfer, Mandy Patinkin: Dress Casual, Ann Hampton Callaway (Angelina Arts Alliance); Around the World in 80 Days/ ALD, Freaky Friday/ ALD (Alley Theatre); Titanic The Musical (ALD) (Signature Theatre); Ain't Too Proud/ intern (Kennedy Center); Originally from Leesburg, GA. MFA in Lighting Design, Virginia Tech; BFA Performance, Valdosta State University. @Spechtc5792, Christianspechtlighting.com

Tennessee Williams

(1911-1983) explored passion with daring honesty and forged a poetic theatre of raw psychological insight that shattered conventional proprieties and transformed the American stage. The autobiographical The Glass Menagerie brought what Mr. Williams called "the catastrophe of success," a success capped by A Streetcar Named Desire, one of the most influential works of modern American literature. An extraordinary series of masterpieces followed, including Vieux Carre, Sweet Bird of Youth, The Rose Tattoo, Orpheus Descending and the classic Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.

ABOUT RUTH STAGE

RUTH STAGE is an edgy and innovative New Jersey based nonprofit theater group, founded by the late Bob Lamb in 1982. Over the last four decades, our maverick organization has produced nearly 200 productions. Our nonprofit has employed hundreds of actors, stage managers, designers, crafts people and a litany of other behind the scenes artists. Our productions, seen by hundreds of thousands of theater goers, have inspired generations to get involved in the arts. By re-introducing thought provoking, seminal playwrights like Tennessee Williams to more audiences, Ruth Stage aims to keep the classics alive. Ruth Stage re-imagines, reinvents and accessibly presents must see, formative works to audiences of all ages. Another unique aspect of our theater group is our Foundation for the Arts initiative. A portion of all our fundraising dollars is dedicated to supporting other organizations in the communities around us. Ruth Stage has given out tens of thousands of dollars in grants to deserving causes. Vietnam veterans, families of fallen first responders, students in the arts and a handful of theater groups have been the recipients of our awards. In September of 2022 Ruth Stage gave away our premiere gift, The Bob Lamb Community Grant, to the Autistic Community Theater group in New York City. In October of 2021 we also sponsored a gala event in Soho called Theater Saves Lives where we partnered with the Cholangiocarcinoma Foundation to raise money and awareness for those living with Bile Duct cancer.