Breaking News: Kevin Bacon Will Lead World Premiere of REAR WINDOW at Hartford Stage; Tony Winner Darko Tresnjak Set to Direct

Renowned film, stage and television actor Kevin Bacon will lead the Hartford Stage cast in the world premiere of Rear Window, adapted for the stage by Keith Reddin, and directed by Hartford Stage Artistic Director Darko Tresnjak, from October 22-November 15.

Tresnjak said, "I read Cornell Woolrich's classic crime story 'Rear Window' in high school, and it made a lasting impression. I'm thrilled to have an opportunity to direct a stage version thirty years later, when the issues of surveillance and voyeurism have become even more pertinent. Keith Reddin's taut adaptation takes place inside of a sweltering, claustrophobic apartment, very much like the addled brain of the leading character, who will be played by Kevin Bacon. I can't imagine finer collaborators than Kevin and Keith in exploring the terrifying psychological landscape of this timeless thriller."

The play is based on the same short story-"Rear Window" by Cornell Woolrich-that inspired the Alfred Hitchcock film, a 1954 Academy Award nominee. It is the classic story of a man confined to his apartment who thinks he may have witnessed a murder in a nearby building. Rear Window is presented by special arrangement with producers Charlie Lyons, Jay Russell and Jeff Steen.

Russell said, "Kevin and I have been friends and collaborators for decades, and we're thrilled he's taking on this iconic role." Lyons concurred, "Kevin's award winning body of work is unparalleled, a leading man who creates memorable characters."

Kevin Bacon is a Golden Globe Award winner and Emmy Award nominee, whose films include A Few Good Men, Apollo 13, Footloose, Murder in the First, JFK, The Woodsman, X-Men: First Class, Sleepers and The River Wild. His current film Cop Car is in theatres now and upcoming he co-stars in Black Mass. His theatre credits include Forty Deuce (OBIE Award), Spike Heels, and the Broadway productions of Slab Boys and An Almost Holy Picture.

In 2014 Tresnjak earned the Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle awards for Best Direction of a Musical for the Broadway production of A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, which he debuted at Hartford Stage in 2012. Earlier this year, he won the OBIE Award for directing The Killer at Theatre for a New Audience.

Reddin's plays include Frame 312, Life and Limb, All the Rage, and Rum and Coke. Also an actor (films Lolita, Revolutionary Road), Reddin has adapted several other works for the stage, including Bulgakov's Black Snow, Molière's The Imaginary Invalid, and Thornton Wilder's Heaven's My Destination.

Woolrich was an admired and influential writer of crime fiction. His stories and novels were turned into movies by such renowned directors as Hitchcock, Harold Clurman, Francois Truffaut, Robert Siodmak and Jacques Tourneur.

Special Dates and Tickets Previews begin at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, October 22

Opens: 8 p.m. Friday, October 30

Closes: 2 p.m. Sunday, November 15

For tickets, call the Hartford Stage box office at 860-527-5151 or visit www.hartfordstage.org. Tickets for all shows start at $35. Box office hours through Labor Day are noon to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday; after Labor Day, noon to 5 p.m. daily. SPECIAL NOTE: Due to renovations at the theatre, there are no walk-up, in-person sales. All sales are by phone and internet only with the website being the quickest way to get tickets.