Geva Theatre Center's 41st Season Continues with John Cariani's LAST GAS, 1/7-2/2

Geva Theatre Center' 41st Season continues with Last Gas by John Cariani. Directed by Skip Greer, this romantic comedy full of heart and humor begins performances on January 7 and runs in the Elaine P. Wilson Mainstage through February 2.

Somewhere on a woodsy road - not far from Almost, Maine - sits Nat Paradis' "Last Gas, First Fun Convenience Store." As Nat sorts through life as a single parent, his teenage son and fun-loving father give him constant grief...and time seems to slip through his fingers. When an old flame returns to town, Nat gets a rare second chance, only to discover that in between love lost and love found, life throws us a lot of curve balls.

John Cariani is an award-winning actor and an accomplished playwright. He is probably best known for his role as CSU Tech Julian Beck on television's "Law & Order," and for his performance as Motel the Tailor in the 2004 Broadway revival of Fiddler on the Roof for which he received a Tony Award nomination and won the Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical. As an actor, he has appeared on and off Broadway, in several films and television shows, and at regional theatres across the country. He got his first break when he was cast in the Off-Broadway play It's My Party (And I'll Die if I Want To), starring Joyce Van Patten and Academy Award winner F. Murray Abraham. As a playwright, John is best known for his first play, Almost, Maine, which premiered at Portland Stage Company in 2004, opened Off-Broadway in 2006, and had a successful run at Geva in 2009. Since its debut Off-Broadway, Almost, Maine has become one of the most frequently produced plays in the United States, with nearly 2000 productions to date. It has also been translated into eight languages. His second play, cul-de-sac premiered Off-Broadway in April of 2006 in a Transport Group production. Last Gas premiered at Portland Stage Company in 2010. Geva's will be the second production of Last Gas. This past November, Mr. Cariani participated in Geva's Festival of New Theatre reading excerpts from his newest play, Love/Sick. Originally from Presque Isle, Maine, Mr. Cariani is a graduate of Amherst College, and now lives in New York City.

The cast of Geva's production of Last Gas features David Mason (Geva's 2009 production of Almost, Maine) as Nat, Aaron Muñoz (Geva's productions of The 39 Steps and The Book Club Play) as Guy, John Pribyl (Geva's productions of Inherit the Wind, A Christmas Carol and Our Town). Making their Geva debuts are Nick Erkelens as Troy, Brenda Withers as Lurene and Gabra Zackman as Cherry-Tracy

Last Gas is directed by Skip Greer and the design team includes Robert Koharchik (scenic design), B. Modern (costume design), Kendall Smith (lighting design) and Dan Roach (sound design).

The Lead Co-Producer of Last Gas is First Niagara Bank. Additional support is provided by Rockcastle Florist and Tasteful Connections Catering. 100.5 The Drive FM is the media sponsor.

Last Gas begins performances January 7 and runs in the Mainstage through February 2.

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