Mint Theater Presents Rutherford & Son

Mint Theater today announced its next production, Rutherford & Son by Githa Sowerby. Performances run February 4th through April 1st at the Mint's home in the heart of the theater district, 311 West 43rd Street. Opening Night is set for Monday February 27th.

Rutherford & Son, set in the industrial north of England, tells the story of a father determined to do whatever it takes to ensure the success and succession of the family glassworks, started by his own father, but now in danger of shattering. John Rutherford rules home and business with an iron fist, a tyrant who inspires fear in his workers and hatred in his grown children. Now rebellion is brewing. His eldest son, working in secret has discovered a process that could save the firm, cutting costs by one third-but he refuses to share it with his father unless he "gets his price."

The Mint first producEd Rutherford & Son in 2001. "The Geiger counter that the Mint Theater Company waves over theater history in search of long un-performed treasures has identified a still-ticking nugget. The play has emotional depth, narrative pull, and linguistic potency to retain an impact today," wrote the New York Times. Performances began on September 7, 2001-and in spite of marvelous reviews, the play could not possibly get the attention it deserved at that tumultuous time

"The tenth anniversary of 9/11 brought back many memories for me, one of which was of this great play, which was scheduled to open on September 12th, 2001. We had a great production and a successful run, but the entire experience was, of course, overshadowed by the events of the time. A new production will give us a chance to celebrate the 100th anniversary of this remarkable play and to share it with the many theatergoers who have discovered the Mint in the last ten years," said Artistic Director Jonathan Bank.

Richard Corley returns to direct a cast that features 2001 cast members Robert Hogan as Rutherford, Dale Soules and David Van Pelt, as well as Eli James (Temporal Powers), Allison Mclemore (The Madras House), James Patrick Nelson (Three Sisters at CSC), Sandra Shipley (Broadway: Importance of Being Earnest, Blithe Spirit, Equus, more), and Sara Surrey (Lost In Yonkers at Papermill).

Hogan is currently appearing in Blood and Gifts for Lincoln Center Theater. His Broadway credits include A Few Good Men and Hamlet. Off-Broadway he has been seen in Mourning Becomes Electra, Accomplices, Never the Sinner, Waiting for Lefty, What Didn't Happen, Hope is the Thing with Feathers, On the Bum, Further Than the Furthest Thing, Boy, Rainbow Kiss, Baby Dance, In the Western Garden, Major Crimes, and Lighting Up the Two-Year-Old. He is the recipient of a Drama League Award and an Outer Critics Circle Award as Best Featured Actor.

Rutherford & Son will have set design by Vicki R. Davis, costume design by Charlotte Palmer-Lane, lighting design by Nicole Pearce, and sound design by Ellen Mandel and Jane Shaw.

"This acute play shows how by striking hard bargains and always winning a man may lose everything. The play is as skillful as blown glass. It is a subtle meditation on ownership, justice, and loyalty," wrote Kate Kellaway in The Observer, reviewing the National Theater's 1994 production. Charles Spencer wrote in The Daily Telegraph, "it is far better than most of Shaw and easily stands comparison with another Edwardian masterpiece, Harley Granville Barker's The Voysey Inheritance… A great play has been reclaimed." "Sowerby knew what she was talking about," wrote Lyn Gardner in The Guardian of a 2009 production. "The amazing thing is that she did it so blatantly and with such flair almost 100 years ago, when women were seen but seldom heard on British stages."

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