Public Theater Extends Suzan-Lori Parks' FATHER COMES HOME FROM THE WARS

The Public Theater announced a two-week extension today for the critically acclaimed FATHER COMES HOME FROM THE WARS (PARTS 1, 2 & 3), a world premiere play written by Public Theater Master Writer Chair Suzan-Lori Parks. Directed by Jo Bonney, FATHER COMES HOME FROM THE WARS (PARTS 1, 2 & 3) began previews on Tuesday, October 14 in the Anspacher Theater and was originally scheduled to close on Sunday, November 16. It will now run an additional two weeks through Sunday, November 30.

"Our Master Writer has written a masterpiece, and I am thrilled that the world has responded so eagerly," said Artistic Director Oskar Eustis.

Member tickets, priced at $45, and single tickets, starting at $65, are available now by calling (212) 967-7555, www.publictheater.org, or in person at the Taub Box Office at The Public Theater at 425 Lafayette Street. The Library at The Public is open nightly for food and drinks, beginning at 5:30 p.m., and Joe's Pub at The Public continues to offer some of the best music in the city.

Pulitzer Prize winner Suzan-Lori Parks (Topdog/Underdog, The Book of Grace) continues her longstanding relationship with The Public Theater with FATHER COMES HOME FROM THE WARS (PARTS 1, 2 & 3), a devastatingly beautiful, dramatic work set over the course of the Civil War. Jo Bonney directs this moving and haunting drama comprised of three plays presented in a single performance. In Part 1, "A Measure of A Man," Hero, a slave who is accustomed to his master's lies, must now decide whether to join him on the Confederate battlefield in exchange for a promise of freedom. Part 2, "A Battle in the Wilderness" follows Hero and the Colonel as they lead a captured Union solider toward the Confederate lines as the cannons approach. Finally, in Part 3, "The Union of My Confederate Parts," the loved ones Hero left behind question whether to escape or wait for his return - only to discover that for Hero, freedom may have come at a great spiritual cost. A masterful new work from one of our most lyrical and powerful writers which was a part of the 2013-14 Public Lab season, FATHER COMES HOME FROM THE WARS is a deeply personal epic about love and hope in a world of impossible choices. Presented in association with American Repertory Theater.

The complete cast for FATHER COMES HOME FROM THE WARS (PARTS 1, 2 & 3) features Sterling K. Brown (Hero); Louis Cancelmi (Smith); Peter Jay Fernandez (Oldest Old Man); Jeremie Harris (Homer); Russell G. Jones (Leader, Runaway); Jenny Jules (Penny); Ken Marks (Colonel); Jacob Ming-Trent (Fourth, Odyssey Dog); Tonye Patano (Third, Runaway); and Julian Rozzell Jr. (Second, Runaway).

FATHER COMES HOME FROM THE WARS (PARTS 1, 2 & 3) features scenic design by Neil Patel, costume design by ESOSA, lighting design by Lap Chi Chu, and sound design and music supervision by Dan Moses Schreier.

SUZAN-LORI PARKS (Playwright) is The Public Theater's Master Writer Chair. Her plays include Topdog/Underdog, which moved to Broadway and won the Pulitzer Prize, making her the first African-American woman to do so; The Book of Grace; f-ing A; In The Blood; Venus; and The America Play. In 2003, Parks wrote a play a day and her project 365 Days/365 Plays was produced in over 700 theaters worldwide. Her additional plays include The Death of the Last Black Man in the Whole Entire World, and Imperceptible Mutabilities in the Third Kingdom. Her additional Broadway credits include The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess, for which she received a Tony Award. She has written screenplays for Brad Pitt, Spike Lee, Oprah Winfrey, and her novel Getting Mother's Body was published by Random House. She is a recipient of the MacArthur "Genius" Award, and one of Time Magazine's "100 Innovators for the Next New Wave."

JO BONNEY (Director) previously directed the Public Lab production of Father Comes Home From the Wars (Parts 1, 2 & 3), as well as Danny Hoch's Some People, Diana Son's Stop Kiss, Anna Deavere Smith's House Arrest, Jose Rivera's References to Salvador Dalí Make Me Hot, and Naomi Wallace's Fever Chart at The Public. She has directed premieres of plays by Alan Ball, Eric Bogosian, Culture Clash, Eve Ensler, Jessica Goldberg, Neil LaBute, Warren Leight, Lynn Nottage, Dael Orlandersmith, Darci Picoult, Will Power, David Rabe, Universes, and Michael Weller. She has also directed productions of plays by Caryl Churchhill, Nilo Cruz, Charles Fuller, Lisa Loomer, John Osborne, John Pollono, and Lanford Wilson. She is the recipient of the 1998 Obie Award for Sustained Excellence of Direction; and is the editor of Extreme Exposure: An Anthology of Solo Performance Texts from the Twentieth Century.

Photo: Joan Marcus

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