Simon Stephens' HARPER REGAN to Play T. Schreiber Theatre, 5/4-6/4

On a bright autumn night in Manchester, a woman named Harper Regan walks away from her job, her home, her husband and her daughter. The play named after her, "Harper Regan" by English playwright Simon Stephens, stunningly reveals life on the cusp of the working class in modern British society. The author is the 2015 TONY Award-winner for best play ("The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time"). This 2008 play is a dramatic Odyssey navigating family, love and redemption. T. Schreiber Theatre, 151 West 26th Street, will present the piece May 4 to June 4, directed by Terry Schreiber.

In this eleven-character drama, a working wife and mother faces disquieting realizations as she leaves her job and family behind in Uxbridge to visit her father, who lies dying in a hospital in South Manchester. Her manipulative boss has forbidden her to take time off. Her husband has been unable to work since being accused (unjustly, Harper thinks) of pedophilia because he photographed children on a playground. Her relationship with her daughter is strained and it mimics the obstacles to intimacy she experiences with her own mother. In an Odyssey through the outskirts of London, she faces the consequences of self-deception, including her impulse to act-out sexually during her crisis. She faces stigmas she must overcome and the necessity of communication with her own family. When she returns home, she finds herself re-shaped by her experience, with a real hope for her own redemption and theirs.

The play was acclaimed in its 2008 premiere at England's National Theatre and was a NY Times critics' pick during a production at the Atlantic Theater here in 2012.

Playwright Simon Stephens, author of over 20 plays, has been characterized as part of the "in-yer-face" generation of playwrights, a cohort that emerged in Great Britain in the 1990s and also includes Sarah Kane, Mark Ravenhill and Anthony Neilson. Stephens' plays almost never repeat the same dramatic structure, but always seem to examine the effect on ordinary people of violence, scandal and loss. Most are set around London, where he lives, or in Stockport, his hometown to the south of Manchester. Their political perspective is drawn from the struggles of ordinary people and they generally express a belief in the kindness of the human spirit. Recurring themes are the absence and failure of fathers and mothers and people's alienation from their immediate surroundings. While his early work specialized in working class characters, with "Harper Regan" he shifted his gaze to middle class characters and their familiar anguish.

Stephens' play, "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time," based on the mystery novel by Mark Haddon, won the Tony for Best New Play and is now in its second year on Broadway. His "Heisenberg," starring Mary-Louise Parker and Denis Arndt, played an acclaimed run in City Center presented by Manhattan Theater Club last summer and will transfer to MTC's Broadway venue, the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, this fall.

"Harper Regan" was embraced by director Terry Schreiber because, for him, it stresses that communication in families is essential for their survival. In his early career, Schreiber was known for themes of men in peril, as in "K2" and "Trip Back Down." Now, as a father of a grown daughter, he finds himself drawn to plays that explore the complex themes of family and relationship.

Schreiber also regards this play as a compelling portrait of a family whose members are holding onto their middle-class standing by their fingernails before their house of cards collapses. He admires the playwright's wonderful ear for dialogue, which reminds him of Harold Pinter's finesse. (Schreiber has directed "Betrayal," The Homecoming," and "The Birthday Party" in the past.)

The actors are Maeve Yore in the title role of Harper Regan, Jerry Topitzer as her boss, Richard Stables as her husband, Lauren Capkanis as her daughter and Margo Goodman as her mother. The cast also includes Ryan Johnston, Mike Gomez, Megan Grace, David Donahoe, John Fennessy and Vick Krishna. Set design is by George Allison. Lighting design is by Dennis Parichy. Costume design is by Hope Governali. Sound design is by Andy Cohen. Dialect coach is Page Clements.

Terry Schreiber has directed the Tony-nominated play "K2," "The Trip Back Down" (starring John Cullum) and "Devour the Snow" on Broadway. His Off-Broadway directing credits include "Desire Under the Elms" at The Roundabout Theatre with Kathy Baker and "Feedlot" at Circle Repertory with Jeff Daniels. He has directed at regional theaters around the country including The Guthrie, Syracuse Stage, Hartman Theatre Co., Pittsburgh Public Theatre, Buffalo Arena Stage (directing Celeste Holm and Betty Buckley) and George Street Playhouse. Internationally, he has directed numerous American plays in Japan. Altogether, he has directed over 100 plays, a mix of contemporary plays and modern classics.

T. Schreiber Theatre began operations in conjunction with Terry Schreiber's acting studio in 1969, at the beginning of the Off-Off Broadway movement, in a converted loft on the Upper East Side. In the mid-70's, the organization attracted national attention when Walter Kerr's glowing review of Schreiber's production of "The Trip Back Down" launched a Broadway production starring John Cullum. The organization moved to East 4th Street in the 80's, during which time Mr. Schreiber directed two more Broadway shows, "Devour the Snow" and "K-2." In 1996 the Studio moved to its current, renovated multi-use space on the seventh floor of 151 West 26th Street, where classes and productions run continuously throughout the year. Actor alumni of T. Schreiber Studio and Theater include Edward Norton, Peter Sarsgaard, Jonny Orsini, Julia Garner, Julia Udine and Julie Halston. The T. Schreiber Theatre presents five full productions per year, a mix of revivals and new works.

Photo by Jonathan Slaff

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