Hunt Talks OUR TOWN and Desire to Join MERCHANT OF VENICE in NYT

In July sixth's New York Times, Helen Hunt spoke with Patrick Healy about joining the Barrow Street Theatre production of OUR TOWN as its first female 'Stage Manager.'

Hunt said, "I'm not joining this production because I saw a huge career move in spending the summer in July doing this play - though I did want to play Portia in THE MERCHANT OF VENICE in the park but couldn't get them interested. But this production is my kind of production, the way it strips away everything and just leaves the audience with these actors and the story."

The entire text of the article, which also features words on Hunt from director David Cromer, can be viewed here.

Producers Scott Morfee, Jean Doumanian and Tom Wirtshafter welcome Academy Award-winning actress Helen Hunt to the cast of David Cromer's acclaimed production of Thornton Wilder's OUR TOWN, for four weeks only (Tuesday, July 6th to Sunday, August 1st), at the Barrow Street Theatre, succeeding Michael McKean, who gave his final performance on Sunday evening, July 4. Ms. Hunt becomes the sixth actor to assume the iconic role in this record-breaking production.

Helen Hunt performed the role of ‘Emily' in the Tony Award-winning Lincoln Center Theatre production of Our Town, in which Spalding Gray was the ‘Stage Manager.' (Mr. Cromer has dedicated his production of Our Town to the memory Spalding Gray). Ms. Hunt's last Broadway appearances were in Yazmena Reza's Life (x) 3, and as ‘Viola' in Lincoln Center Theater's production of Twelfth Night.

The New York production of Our Town began performances on February 17, 2009, with an official opening night on February 26, 2009 where it received rave reviews at the downtown venue. Our Town went on to win the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Production and Outstanding Direction and Obie Award for Outstanding Director. This current staging of Our Town enters its second year on February 26th and became the longest-running production of the play in its 72-year history with its record-breaking 337th performance on December 16, 2009.

The current cast of Our Town includes (in alphabetical order) Elizabeth Audley as Mrs. Soames, Robert Beitzel as Howie Newsome, Kati Brazda as Mrs. Webb, Will Brill as Joe Crowell, Jr, Nathan Dame as Sam Craig, Roger E. DeWitt as Joe Stoddard, Donna Jay Fulks as Mrs. Gibbs, Emma Galvin as Rebecca Gibbs, Jennifer Grace as Emily Webb, Wilbur Edwin Henry as Professor Willard, Mark Hattan as Constable Warren, David Manis as Mr. Webb, Jonathan Mastro as Simon Stimson, Michael McKean as the Stage Manager, James McMenamin as George Gibbs, Seamus Mulcahy as Wally Webb, Jeff Still as Doc Gibbs, Jason Yachanin as Si Crowell, with Dana Jacks, Lynn Laurence, Kathleen Peirce, Keith Perry and Mark Shock.

Our Town is produced by Scott Morfee, Jean Doumanian, Tom Wirtshafter, Ted Snowdon, Eagle Productions, Dena Hammerstein/Pam Pariseau, The Weinstein Company, and Burnt Umber Productions.

The performance schedule is as follows: Tuesday - Friday at 7:30 p.m., Saturday at 2:30 p.m. & 7:30 p.m., Sunday at 2:30 p.m. & 7:30 p.m. Tickets are priced at $69 & $49.50 and are available through SmartTix (212) 868-4444, www.smarttix.com, or at the Barrow Street Theatre box office (open at 1 p.m. daily). Student tickets at $20 are available on the day of performance only at the box office. New block of tickets now on sale through September 12, 2010.

For more information, visit www.ourtownoffbroadway.com or www.barrowstreettheatre.com.

Helen Hunt Few actresses have seen careers with such longevity and diversity as Helen Hunt. From her earliest work in community theater and on Broadway to her seamless transition from television to film, Hunt remains a critics' darling with a body of work that illustrates her talent as an actress. Helen is next seen in director Richard Levine's drama Every Day co-starring Live Schreiber. Schreiber and Hunt play a couple whose marriage is strained to the breaking point. The film premiered at the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival. She recently wrapped production on Sean McNamara's Soul Surfer in Hawaii opposite Dennis Quaid and Anna Sophia Robb. Hunt made her directorial debut in 2008 with Then She Found Me, based on the novel by Elinor Lipman. Helen not only directed her passion project but also co-wrote and co-produced the feature for ThinkFilm as well as starred opposite Matthew Broderick, Colin Firth, and Bette Midler. In the fall of 2008, she pursued directing further when she directed a commercial for Frito-Lay's "TrueNorth" campaign which premiered during the 2009 Academy Award telecast. Helen Hunt rose to fame playing the role of ‘Jamie Buchman' on the fan favorite and hit NBC sitcom "Mad About You". Seven times nominated for an Emmy in as many seasons, she won the award four times for best actress in a comedy series. In addition, her work on the show also earned her four Golden Globe Awards (three for acting, one for producing the series), a coveted Screen Actors Guild Award, and three American Comedy Awards.

Hunt was a pioneer for actresses making the leap from television to film and did so with a seemingly effortless ease. She quickly cemented her place as one of Hollywood's most sought after actresses with her portrayal of a single mother / waitress in Jim Brooks' As Good As It Gets opposite Jack Nicholson. Her work in the critically lauded film garnered Hunt a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award and an Oscar for Best Actress. Hunt's illustrious list of film credits include the ensemble film Bobby; A Good Woman; HBO's miniseries Empire Falls; Woody Allen's The Curse of the Jade Scorpion; Robert Altman's Dr. T and the Women; Pay It Forward; Robert Zemeckis' Castaway; What Women Want; and Twister. Earlier film credits include The Waterdance; Kiss of Death; Mr. Saturday Night; Peggy Sue Got Married; Next of Kin; Miles From Home; Girls Just Wanna Have Fun; and Project X. Helen Hunt's early television credits include her television debut in 1973's "Pioneer Woman"; CBS' "Bill: On His Own"; NBC's "Choices of the Heart"; "Murder in New Hampshire: The Pamela Smart Story"; "Into the Badlands"; "The Miracle of Kathy Miller"; "In the Company of Darkness"; "St. Elsewhere"; "Land of Little Rain"; ABC's "My Life and Times. No stranger to the stage, Hunt also boasts an impressive range of roles in live theater from the Early Stages of her career. Her performances have been showcased in shows including the Ensemble Studio Theater's production of Been Taken; Broadway's production of the Thornton Wilder's classic Our Town; Shakespeare in the Park's production of Taming of the Shrew; Broadway's production at the Lincoln Center of Twelfth Night; and later in a Los Angeles production of The Guys for The Actors' Gang. Hunt was last on the Broadway stage in the production of Life x 3 directed by Matthew Warchus. A native of Los Angeles, Hunt grew up in an artistic environment. Her father, GorDon Hunt, is a director and respected acting coach and her singing teacher is one of Hollywood's finest voice coaches, her grandmother, Dorothy Fries. Hunt currently lives in Los Angeles with her partner, Matthew Carnahan, her daughter Makena Lei and her stepson Emmett.