Reed Birney, Laura Heisler, et al. Set for O'Neill National Playwrights Conference

The Eugene O'Neill Theater Center has announced cast members for this summer's National Playwrights Conference.

The Conference, under the leadership of Artistic Director Wendy C. Goldberg, runs from July 6 through July 30 and will develop eight new plays.

In commenting on the cast for this year's NPC plays, Ms. Goldberg said: "We are so grateful to have such astonishing actors as part of our process at the National Playwrights Conference. This season we are excited to bring back some of our illustrious alumni actors but we are also investing in new talent this summer, as we bring up students from the National Theater Institute to our professional company. All of these actors will help us immensely as we begin to develop these scripts with an eye toward eventual production."

The Nether, by Jennifer Haley, with staged public readings on July 6 and 7, will feature Michael Countryman*, known for his appearance in Mary Stuart on Broadway (2009) and his nomination for the 1987 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play (The Common Pursuit); Jon Devries*; Megan Green; and Jeanine Seralles*.

The Happiest Song Plays Last, by Quiara Alegría Hudes, with readings July 8 and 9, will feature Demo Chrysan*, Kevin Geer*, Zabryna Guevara*, Armando Riesco*, Najla Said*, Jaime Tireli*, and musician Nelson Gonzales.

Good Goods, by Christina Anderson, with readings July 13 and 14, will feature Cherise Booth*, Frank Harts*, Tyrone Henderson*, Aja King*, Curtis McClarin*, and Hubert Point Du Jour*.

An Incident, by Anna Ziegler, with readings July 15 and 16, will feature Molly Coogan*, Rick Foucheux*, Linda Gehringer*, Ben Morrow, and Matt Stadleman*.

Acquainted with the Night, by Keith Reddin, with readings July 20 and 21, will feature Reed Birney*, recipient of the 2011 Drama Desk Special Award for his performances in Tigers Be Still, A Small Fire, and The Dream of the Burning Boy -a piece featured in the 2010 National Playwrights Conference; Hannah Cabell*; Rob Campbell*; Laura Heisler*, known for her appearance in Coram Boy on Broadway (2007); Scott Lowell*, returning for a second summer to the O'Neill after his performance in A Devil at Noon in the 2010 Conference ; Natalie Payne*, Thomas Jay Ryan*, and Ray Anthony Thomas*.

Leveling Up, by Deborah Zoe Laufer, readings July 22 and 23, will feature Jessica Cummings*, Evan Enderle*, Stephen Ellis*, and Ben Morrow.

The Troublemaker Project, by Dan LeFranc, readings July 27 and 28, will feature Brett Aresco, Steve Boyer*, Chad Goodridge*, Benjamin Katz, Gabe King*, Christopher McFarland*, Jenny Seastone Stern*, and Danielle Skraastad*.

How We Got On, by Idris Goodwin, readings July 29 and 30, will feature Don Guillory*, Brian Quijada, and Karen Pittman*.

*Denotes a member of Actors' Equity Association.

Tickets are now on sale for this year's summer conferences, including along with National Playwrights Conference: National Music Theater Conference staged public readings June 25 - July 15, and Cabaret & Performance Conference presentations August 3 - 13. Tickets may be ordered online at www.theoneill.org or through the box office at 860.443.1238. Discounted tickets are available to O'Neill Members; for information, email Membership@theoneill.org or call 860-443-5378 x211.

The Eugene O'Neill Theater Center, founded in 1964 in honor of Eugene O'Neill, four-time Pulitzer Prize Winner and America's only playwright to win the Nobel Prize in Literature, is the country's preeminent organization dedicated to the development of new works and new voices for the American theater. The O'Neill has been home to more than 1,000 new works for the stage and 2,500 emerging artists. Scores of projects developed at the O'Neill have gone on to full production at other theaters around the world, including Broadway, Off-Broadway and major regional theaters.

O'Neill programs include the National Playwrights Conference, National Music Theater Conference, National Critics Institute, National Puppetry Conference, the Cabaret & Performance Conference, and National Theater Institute, which conducts semester-long, fully intensive theater training programs and Theatermakers, a six-week summer program.

In addition, the O'Neill owns and operates Monte Cristo Cottage as a museum open to the public. Childhood summer home of Eugene O'Neill, the Cottage is a National Historic Landmark.

The Eugene O'Neill Theater Center received the 2010 Tony Award for Regional Theater, a special Tony Award for Theatrical Excellence in 1979, the National Opera Award, the Jujamcyn Award for Theatre Excellence, and the Arts and Business Council Encore Award. For more information, visit www.theoneill.org or email theaterlives@theoneill.org.

Photo Credit: Peter James Zielinski

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