Wide Eyed Productions will present a New York revival of Dale Wasserman's One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest at the Richmond-Shepard Theatre. Opening night is set for May 6th.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest premiered on Broadway in 1963. Revivals include an Off-Broadway production in 1971 and the Steppenwolf Theatre Company's 2001 Broadway staging starring Gary Sinise, which received a Tony Award for Best Play Revival.
Wide Eyed is a New York-based collective committed to the creation of risk-taking, relevant theatre, to the conception of contemporary works and the rebirth of classic texts. "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is a perfect fit with Wide Eyed" states artistic director Kristin Skye Hoffmann. Hoffmann will direct Cuckoo's Nest, the final play of Wide Eyed's second full season.
Playing crazy to avoid prison work detail, the play revolves around manic free spirit Randle P. McMurphy (Ben Newman) who is sent to the state mental hospital for evaluation. There he encounters a motley crew of mostly voluntary inmates, including cowed mama's boy Billy (Trevor Dallier) and silent Native American Chief Bromden (Solomon Shiv), presided over by the icy Nurse Ratched (Amy Lee Pearsall).
Other cast members include Andrew Harris, Sage Seals, Lloyd Mulvey, Billy Dutton, Anthony Reimer, Lucy McRae, Ali Gilbertson, Brianne Mai, Duane Ferguson, Joe Hernandez, Brian Kaufman, Robert White and Leal Vona.
Cuckoo's design team is Joshua David Bishop (Sets), Eleni Koutsouradis of Hired Guns (Costumes), David Gillen (Sound Design), Ryan Metzler (Lighting Design) and Lara Maerz (Properties Design).
Stage manager is Danielle Newell with technical direction provided by Joe Novak.
"Cuckoo's Nest is a modern classic in all its forms. From Kesey's novel, to Wasserman's play, to Jack Nicholson's iconic performance in the fi lm, the piece just refuses to sit on the shelf. I hear the music in this play," Hoffmann explains, "and there's an undercurrent of insane rhythms, like the constant pulse of this city. In this production even those familiar with the story will hear it and feel it in a new and visceral way."
Wide-Eyed Productions will produce in partnership with Michael C. Freeland and Kenny Wade Marshall. Justin Ness is Managing Director.
Performance times are Wednesday through Saturday at 8pm with Sunday matinees at 3pm. There will also be a special pay what you can matinee on Saturday May 23rd.
For more information visit www.wideeyedproductions.com
