Jim Sullivan Hosts Talkback at Macbeth, July 24

Dominic Cuskern, producer of Gallery Players' production of The Tragedy of Macbeth, has announced the addition of a special guest talkback after the production's first Sunday matinee performance.

On Sunday, July 24th, Pearl Theater Artistic Director, Jim Sullivan, will take stage for comment and dialog on all things Macbeth, a play he has also directed. Mr. Sullivan succeeded company founder, Shepard Sobel, as Artistic Director of The Pearl Theatre Company in 2009. He has directed nine productions for the company, beginning with the 2002 production of Much Ado About Nothing. Mr. Sullivan's other Pearl Productions have included Widowers' House, Biography, The Importance of Being Earnest, Twelfth Night, The Playboy of the Western World, Hard Times, and The Sneeze. He has directed in theaters throughout the country, including the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, the Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Studio Theatre, Milwaukee Repertory Theater, and the Arden Theatre in Philadelphia. Mr. Sullivan was the founder and Artistic Director of the New American Theater in Rockford, Illinois, and recently completed eight seasons as Associate Artistic Director of the Utah Shakespeare Festival where he directed productions of Richard III, Hamlet, King Lear, Henry V, "Art," Stones in His Pockets, The Merchant of Venice, and All's Well That Ends Well. His adaptation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, in collaboration with Joseph Hanreddy, played to acclaim at both the Utah and Oregon Shakespeare Festivals in 2010, following its premiere at Milwaukee Rep in 2009.

On Sunday, July 31st, the closing performance will be followed by a talkback with director, Mark Harborth, and the cast, who will discuss-among other things - the experience of bringing Shakespeare's characters to vivid life- and how they learned all those words.

The Tragedy Of Macbeth opens Thursday evening, July 21 and runs for 12 performances through Sunday, July 31, 2011. Performances take place Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 7:30pm; matinees are Saturday at 2pm and Sunday at 3pm. There will be a special "pay-what-you-will" performance on Monday, July 25, at 7:30pm.

Long-standing Pearl Theatre Resident Acting Company member and former Gallery Players board president, Dominic Cuskern, produces. Mark Harborth, admired director of many Gallery favorites- among them, Noises Off, Jesus Christ Superstar, and Chess- will direct. Macbeth is an Actors Equity Association showcase, approval pending.

Tickets are $18 for Adults, $14 for senior citizens and children 12 and under. Tickets can be purchased 24/7 online at www.galleryplayers.com or by calling Theatermania at 212-352-3101 (phone hours 9-9 weekdays, 10-6 weekends). The Gallery Players is located at 199 14th St., between 4th and 5th Aves. in Park Slope, Brooklyn.

A New York institution since 1967, The Gallery Players has served actors and audiences alike for more than four decades by showcasing burgeoning new talent and offering a home base for theater professionals. Its eclectic programming of intimate revivals and ambitious new work in inventive productions has earned it the reputation of "New York's Best Kept Secret." Among its famous alumni are founding member Harvey Fierstein, Broadway regular Diedre Goodwin, New York theater personality Seth Rudetsky, and many others.