JESUS HOPPED THE 'A' TRAIN Extends Again at Signature Theatre

The critically acclaimed Signature Theatre production of Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train, by Pulitzer Prize-winner Stephen Adly Guirgis and directed by Obie Award-winner Mark Brokaw, has been extended for a third week, the company announced today. The production will now run through December 3, 2017.

Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train opened Monday, October 23 on The Irene Diamond Stage at The Pershing Square Signature Center (480 West 42nd Street between 9th and 10th Avenues).

In Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train, Angel Cruz is a 30-year-old bicycle messenger awaiting trial for the death of the leader of a religious cult. Inside Rikers Island, a terrified Angel is befriended by a charismatic serial killer named Lucius Jenkins. Lucius has found God and been born again, and now, Angel's life and the course of his trial will be changed forever.

The cast includes Erick Betancourt (Julius Caesar), Sean Carvajal (Seven Spots On The Sun), Screen Actors Guild Award-winner Ricardo Chavira ("Desperate Housewives"), Stephanie DiMaggio (A Confederacy of Dunces), Edi Gathegi ("The Blacklist").

The creative team includes Riccardo Hernandez (Scenic Design), Dede M. Ayite (Costume Design), Scott Zielinski (Lighting Design), M.L. Dogg (Sound Design), Deborah Hecht (Dialect Coach), Cookie Jordan (Wig and Makeup Design). Linda Marvel is the Production Stage Manager. Casting by Caparelliotis Casting.

Guirgis is Signature's current Residency One playwright. Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train is the first of three of his plays Signature will produce over the coming year. Guirgis' Our Lady of 121st Street will be presented in the spring of 2018, with a new play to follow during the 2018-19 Season. All three productions are available for purchase with a 2017-18 Season subscription.

Signature Theatre celebrates playwrights and gives them an artistic home. Signature makes an extended commitment to a playwright's body of work, and during this journey the writer is engaged in every aspect of the creative process. By producing a series of plays by each resident writer, Signature delivers an intimate and immersive journey into the playwright's singular vision.

Signature serves its mission through its permanent home at The Pershing Square Signature Center, a three-theatre facility on West 42nd Street designed by Frank Gehry Architects to host Signature's three distinct playwrights' residencies and foster a cultural community. At the Center, opened in January 2012, Signature continues its original Playwright-in-Residence model as Residency One, a year-long intensive exploration of a single writer's body of work. Residency Five, the only program of its kind, was launched at the Center to support multiple playwrights as they build bodies of work by guaranteeing each writer three productions over a five-year period. The Legacy Program, launched during Signature's 10th Anniversary, invites writers from both residencies back for productions of premiere or earlier plays.

The Pershing Square Signature Center is a major contribution to New York City's cultural landscape and provides a venue for cultural organizations that supports and encourages collaboration among artists throughout the space. In addition to its three intimate theatres, the Center features a Studio Theatre, a rehearsal studio and a public café, bar and bookstore.

Through the Signature Ticket Initiative: A Generation of Access, Signature has also made an unprecedented commitment to making its productions accessible by underwriting the cost of the initial run tickets, currently priced at $30, through 2031.

Founded in 1991 by James Houghton, Signature has presented entire seasons of the work of Edward Albee, Lee Blessing, Horton Foote, María Irene Fornés, Athol Fugard, John Guare, A.R. Gurney, David Henry Hwang, Bill Irwin, Adrienne Kennedy, Tony Kushner, Romulus Linney, Charles Mee, Arthur Miller, Sam Shepard, Paula Vogel, Naomi Wallace, August Wilson, Lanford Wilson and a season celebrating the historic Negro Ensemble Company. Stephen Adly Guirgis and Suzan-Lori Parks are the current Residency One playwrights. Signature's Residency Five playwrights are Annie Baker, Martha Clarke, Will Eno, Katori Hall, Quiara Alegría Hudes, Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, Kenneth Lonergan, Dave Malloy, Dominique Morisseau and Regina Taylor; and current Legacy Playwright is Edward Albee. In addition to the Regional Theatre Tony Award, Signature's productions and its resident writers have been recognized with the Pulitzer Prize, Lucille Lortel, Obie, Drama Desk and AUDELCO awards, among many other distinctions. For more information, visit signaturetheatre.org.

Photo Credit: Joan Marcus