Theatre for the New City Adds Performance of LEMON TREE 10/23

LEMON TREE, a new play reminding audiences that romance can exist much later in life than Romeo and Juliet, has added a Manhattan performance at Theater for the New City on Oct. 23 following a standing ovation at its Long Island premiere.
The New York City presentation follows a sold out opening night that ended with a standing ovation at Theater 294, 294 Farmingdale Rd. (Route 109), in East Farmingdale, where the play runs through Nov. 6.
Theater for the New City Executive Director Crystal Field along with the Textile Co. are presenting the show at TNC, where numerous other works by Lemon Tree playwright Claude Solnik have been presented.
TNC also is presenting Victoria Woodhull, a play by Solnik being directed by Donna Mejia about the first woman to run for president, debuting Nov. 17.
Judith Anderson, Robert Hagan, Adrienne Pellegrino and Jennifer Alexander star in the New York City premiere of Lemon Tree, directed by Rich Jimenez.
Additional Long Island shows are Fri. Oct. 28 @ 7 p.m., Sun. Oct. 30 @ 2 p.m., Sat. Nov. 5 @ 7 p.m. and Sun. Nov. 6 @ 2 p.m. as well as the one-night special presentation in Manhattan.
Tickets are available to the Manhattan show by clicking here and to Long Island shows by clicking here.
The play tells the story of a couple who meet later in life, enjoying themselves and each other and facing very different challenges than they would if they met earlier.
Judith Anderson, an accomplished actress (and mother of Edie Falco), plays Claire who meets Deuce, played by Robert Hagan.
Adrienne Pellegrino plays Claire's daughter Rebecca, who tries to slow down the relationship when she finds out that Deuce may not be everything he appears.
Jennifer Alexander, recently seen in the CBS sitcom Kevin Can Wait starring Kevin James, plays Rita, who at first tries to split the two apart only to bring them closer together later on.
"The Gin Game is a great play for older actors," Solnik said. "But I felt that there are many good, older actors today as well as older audiences. Those actors need opportunities to bring stories to life. This is a play where older as well as younger actors play key roles and see a mirror of events that can happen later in life."
He said Lemon Tree looks at what happens when people fall in love, even as memory begins to fall for one or both.
"It's a love story," he said. "But in addition to a play about a man and a woman, it's also about a mother and a daughter, about aging and a different kind of romance, because as we age, reality can change."
Lemon Tree is the latest work by Claude Solnik, whose group the Textile Co. is in residence at Theater for the New City.
Solnik's plays "Lady from Limerick," "The Falls," "Butterfly Hour," "Caretaker from Corofin" and Pedro Castillo is Innocent" all were presented at TNC.
Solnik's play "Year of the Iguana," about Tennessee and Rose Williams, was recently presented at Studio Theatre Long Island in Lindenhurst.
Bare Bones Theater also presented his work and he was among the winners at the Northport One Act Festival.
"I think it's important to tell stories about life today and that means stories about people of all ages," Solnik said. "This is a different kind of memory play and a different kind of romance."
Lemon Tree is being presented Sun. Oct. 23 at 2 p.m., at Theater for the New City (www.theaterforthenewcity.net), 155 First Ave. in Manhattan in addition to its Long Island run.