Pearl Theatre Presents HENRY IV, PART 1, Now thru 3/17

The Pearl Theatre Company continues its 29th season-the first season in its new home on West 42nd Street-with Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 1. On the heels of acclaim for its current Bard-centric production, In Acting Shakespeare, The Pearl picks up where the company left off after last year's staging of Richard II, directed by Artistic Director J. R. Sullivan. Henry IV, Part 1 is directed by Davis McCallum and features Resident Acting Company members Bradford Cover as King Henry and Dan Daily as Falstaff.

Performances of Henry IV, Part 1 will take place tonight, February 15-March 17 at The Pearl Theatre. Critics are welcome as of Thursday, February 28 for an official opening of Sunday, March 3 at 7pm. The Pearl Theatre is located at 555 West 42nd Street in New York City. Tickets are $65 ($50 previews, $35 seniors, $20 students, $20 Thursday rush) and can be purchased by visiting pearltheatre.org or calling 212.563.9261.

McCallum (Water by the Spoonful, The Whale) whirls us into a world where the rule of Henry and the magnificent misrule of Jack Falstaff are about to collide. While the king prepares for war, brash Prince Hal and a boisterous crew of robbers and rascals laugh at the gathering storm. Shakespeare's rousing tale of comic conspiracies and heroic deeds reveals how a Prince's coming of age will shape the fate of a nation-one way or another.

The cast of Henry IV, Part 1 includes Pearl Resident Acting Company (RAC) member Bradford Cover (Broadway: A Thousand Clowns, Pearl's 1998 production of Richard II) as Henry, Pearl RAC member Dan Daily (Pearl's The Philanderer, The Bald Soprano) as Falstaff, Obie Award-winning Pearl RAC member Sean McNall (Broadway: A Life in the Theatre, Pearl's 2011 production of Richard II) as Northumberland, Pearl RAC member Lee Stark (Pearl's Playboy of the Western World) as Lady Percy, Pearl RAC member Dominic Cuskern (Broadway's Inherit the Wind; Pearl's Twelfth Night) as Glendower, Pearl RAC member Chris Mixon (Pearl's Figaro; The Mint's Dr. Knock) as Worcester, John Brummer (Long Day's Journey Into Night at Actors Theatre of Louisville) as Prince Hal. Cast also includes Shawn Fagan as Hotspur, Michael Irish as Walter Blunt, Ade Otukoya as John of Lancaster, Ruibo Quian as Lady Mortimer, and Will Sturdivant as Mortimer.

The creative team includes Daniel Zimmerman (Sets), Whitney Locher (Costumes), Michael Chybowski (Lighting), Peter John Still (Sound), Kate Farrington (Dramaturg) and Dale Smallwood (Production Stage Manager).

And while The Pearl's 2013-2014 season has not been announced, Artistic Director J. R. Sullivan confirms that Henry V will anchor the season. "Henry IV is one of the greatest works in the entire Shakespearean canon," says J. R. Sullivan, The Pearl's Artistic Director, "and it occupies the heart of the tetralogy of plays that culminate in Henry V. More than a 'history play' in any narrowly defined sense, Henry IV, Part 1 vaults into levels of dramatic scope and comic sweep that advanced all of Shakespeare's history plays into entirely new considerations."

On Davis McCallum's unique take on Henry IV, Sullivan says, "Henry IV is a story of family-focused on a son, Prince Hal, who has in effect two fathers, one of blood but another whom he has chosen. Director Davis McCallum brings an acutely perceptive eye and ear to this remarkable play. His dynamic take on the work, given physical life by his design team, is especially strong for our times, as well as our Acting Company, and The Pearl's new performance space on 42nd Street."

Mr. McCallum's New York credits include Quiara Hudes' Water By The Spoonful (Second Stage, 2012 Pulitzer Prize), Sam Hunter's The Whale (Playwrights Horizons), Gabe Kahane and Seth Bockley's February House (Public Theater), Sarah Ruhl and Todd Almond's Melancholy Play (13P), Hunter's A Bright New Boise (Partial Comfort; Drama Desk Nomination) and Five Gencoides (Clubbed Thumb), Greg Moss's punkplay (Clubbed Thumb), Chuck Mee's Queens Boulevard (Signature Theater), Quiara Hudes' Elliot: A Soldier's Fugue (P73; Pulitzer Prize Finalist), Henry V (New Victory), Jane Eyre, The Tempest, The Turn Of The Screw (The Acting Company). Regional credits include the Guthrie, The Old Globe, Humana, Hartford Stage, Long Wharf, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Williamstown, Alliance, Chautauqua, the O'Neill, Playmakers Rep, Two River, New York Stage & Film, others. Mr. McCallum is also a Drama League Alum; NEA/TCG Career Development Program; Boris Sagal Fellowship; Princess Grace Honoree.

Founded in 1984 by a small troupe of artists in Chelsea, The Pearl has grown into a renowned Off-Broadway company. The Pearl connects audiences to timeless classic plays, while providing an artistic home to theatre professionals, especially its core company of resident actors. As New York's only classical resident company, The Pearl has produced a body of work encompassing the full breadth of theatre history, from ancient Greek tragedy to contemporary works rooted in the classics.

The Pearl has garnered numerous awards, including most recently, a special 2011 Drama Desk Award for "notable productions of classic plays and nurturing a stalwart resident company of actors."

This past October, The Pearl celebrated the opening its first permanent home, located at 555 West 42nd Street.

Henry IV, Part 1 by William Shakespeare, directed by Davis McCallum, will play the following schedule:

Feb. 15, 16, 21-23, 27, 28, March 1, 2, 6-9, 13-16 at 8pm
Feb. 16, 17, 20, 23, 24, 27, March 2, 6, 9, 10, 13, 16, 17 at 2pm
Feb. 19, 26, March 3, 5, 12 at 7pm

Curtain-Up Classics Informal Lecture: Saturday March 2, 11am, Free
Tuesday Talkbacks with Cast & Crew: Post-Show March 5 & 12, Free

The Pearl Theatre is located at 555 West 42nd Street, NYC. Tickets are $65 ($50 previews, $35 seniors, $20 student rush, $20 Thursday rush). Visit pearltheatre.org or call 212.563.9261.

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