Kate Lardner, Joshua Mostel and More Set for Ensemble Studio Theatre's Panel on Children of the Blacklist, 4/14

Six children whose parents were on the blacklist of the 1950s will gather for a panel discussion after the Sunday, April 14, 5:00pm performance of Finks, playwright Joe Gilford's fictionalized account of his parents, Jack Gilford and MAdeline Lee Gilford, and their real life experience of the blacklist, at the Ensemble Studio Theatre, 549 West 52nd Street.

Joining Joe Gilford for the free post-show discussion are Kate Lardner, daughter of screenwriter Ring Lardner, Jr.; Julie Garfield, daughter of actor John Garfield; Joshua Mostel, son of actor Zero Mostel; Deborah Offner, daughter of director and producer Mortimer Offner; and Tony Kahn, son of screenwriter Gordon Kahn. Tony Kahn is the, WGBH and syndicated NPR radio host and will moderate the panel.

Finks is a tale of a scoundrel time, a time of paranoia, loyalty and betrayal, show business and show trials, told from the life of two young entertainers who, at the birth of their careers, had to confront the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC). This play is about names, the naming of names, career-determining choices and finks.

Jack Gilford was the gentle man with the kind face we knew from the Cracker Jack commercials, but in the early 1950s, when on the verge of stardom and his own TV series, somebody spoke his name. MAdeline Lee Gilford was a TV and radio actress until somebody spoke her name. Both played roles they never thought they'd play in one the darkest times in American history when they were given top billing by finks.

Joe Gilford, center, with the two actors who play his parents, Miriam Silverman and Aaron
Serotsky Gerry Goodstein photo

Directed Giovanna Sardelli, Finks featuring Michael Cullen, Ned Eisenberg, Leo Ash Evans, Jason Liebman, Kenney M. Green, Thomas Lyons, Aaron Serotsky and Miriam Silverman begins previews at the Ensemble Studio Theatre, 549 West 52nd Street, Wednesday, March 28, at 7:00pm for an opening Saturday, April 6, at 7:00pm.

"Joe Gilford has done a great job of capturing the fast paced spirit and humor of those times by writing a play that takes place at Cafe Society, the integrated Greenwich Village nightclub, and the HUAC hearings," said the Ensemble Studio Theatre's Artistic Director William Carden. "The result is a well-crafted and compelling play about choices that resonate powerfully today."
Playwright Joe Gilford remembers the paranoia of the blacklist years as a small child. "We were always told not to discuss something called 'communism'. We didn't really know what that meant, but understood to keep our mouths shut." Finks has been developing for many years, he adds. "I always thought that my parents' refusal to name names was heroic. But they always explained that they had no choice. They could never hurt their friends."

Jack and Madeline remained activists for their whole lives. Mr. Gilford hopes that "my play will recreate the hardships that actors experienced having to make choices that artists should never be asked to make."

Pictured from left to right in a scene from Finks are Ned Eisenberg, Aaron Serotsky, Miriam
Silverman and Michael Cullen. Gerry Goodstein photo

Joe Gilford's plays have been produced or presented at Naked Angels, Roundabout, Circle Rep, New York Stage & Film, the Westbank Downstairs Theater, and Todd Mountain Theater Project. His plays include Knockdown, Not Tunisia, In Aisle 4, The End of Our Rope, The Love Museum, No Fault and Danny's Brian, for which he received an Alfred P. Sloan Foundation grant for this play about the neuro-science of brain injuries in football. Finks was originally presented by New York Stage and Film Company and The Powerhouse Theater at Vassar on July 23, 2008 He most recently was on the writing team of Gold Fever, a four-part mini-series on the 1849 Gold Rush for Discovery Channel. Mr. Gilford has written the documentaries The Great American Songbook, a history of American popular song hosted by Michael Feinstein for PBS's Great Performances now on Time Warner Home Video. Also for PBS: Beyond Wiseguys: Italian Americans and the Movies hosted by John Turturro and featuring Paul Sorvino, Marisa Tomei, and many others. He has a New York Emmy Award for his work on WNET-NY's (PBS) documentary City Arts series. He has also been a writer and producer at Showtime, Bravo, Court TV, F/X, and New York's MSG MetroGuide channel. Since 1999 he has taught screenwriting at NYU's Undergraduate Film & TV Dept., Tisch School of the Arts. He is also currently a Visiting Professional teaching screenwriting at Montclair State University's Dept. of Film in New Jersey. www.storyrescue.com

Finks performs Wednesday through Sundays evenings at 7:00pm with matinees Saturday at 2:00pm and an early curtain Sundays at 5:00pm. Regular tickets are $30, $20 for student/seniors. To order tickets, call 866.811.4111 or click HERE.

The Ensemble Studio Theatre (EST) was founded in the belief that extraordinary support yields extraordinary work. We are a dynamic and expanding company of artists committed to the discovery and nurturing of new voices and the continued support and growth of artists throughout their creative lives. Through our unique collaborative process we develop and produce original, provocative, and authentic new plays that engage and challenge our audience and audiences across the country.

Pictured: A scene from Finks: Ned Eisenberg, Aaron Serotsky, Miriam Silverman and Michael Cullen. Photo Credit: Gerry Goodstein.

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