For Immediate Release, please
Contact: Matt Polk
Tom D’Ambrosio
Frances White
Sasha Pensanti
917-261-3988
THE ORIGINAL CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED STAR
RETURNS FOR FIVE PERFORMANCES ONLY
TONY AWARD WINNER
RON RIFKIN
JOINS THE COMPANY OF
THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE
FOR FIVE PERFORMANCES ONLY
MAY 20 – 23
JOHN NOBLE
UNABLE TO PERFORM
CERTAIN PERFORMANCES
DUE TO SLEEPY HOLLOW FILMING CONFLICT
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May 14, 2014 – RON RIFKIN, whose performance as Isaac Geldhart in the original production of The Substance of Fire earned him critical accolades as well as the Obie, Drama Desk, Lucille Lortel, and Drama-Logue awards, will step into the role for five performances only, May 20 – 23, at Second Stage Theatre. The production’s current star, JOHN NOBLE, is unable to perform those performances due to an unforeseen conflict with the filming schedule for his Fox series, Sleepy Hollow. Mr. Noble is scheduled to return for the final weekend of performances, May 24 and 25.
Fresh off a 3 month commitment to Camp David at Arena Stage, Mr. Rifkin attended the performance this past Friday evening and, when he was informed of the scheduling conflict, offered to step into the role on short notice.
“Despite his reputation, I have always found Isaac Geldhart fascinating company and I am more than happy to have the chance to spend more time with him, especially in such a spectacular production,” said Mr. Rifkin. “And if it can help Robbie, John, Trip and everyone at Second Stage Theatre, all the better.”
Second Stage Artistic Director Carole Rothman adds, “We’re thrilled and grateful that Ron is stepping in to this role so quickly and we know he’ll once again be an unforgettable Isaac Geldhart. It’s an enormous role, so I would expect that after 22 years he may need to look at the script.”
Directed by TRIP CULLMAN, this production of JON ROBIN BAITZ’s drama THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE also features HALLEY FEIFFER (2ST’s suburbia, The House of Blue Leaves), DANIEL ERIC GOLD (2ST’s subUrbia, Ugly Betty), CARTER HUDSON (The Whipping Man), and CHARLAYNE WOODARD (2ST’s Sorrows and Rejoicings, Ain’t Misbehavin’).
Tickets are available through 2ST.com or by calling the box office at 212-246-4422. All performances are staged at Second Stage’s Tony Kiser Theatre, 305 West 43rd Street (just west of Eighth Avenue). NOTE: the performance on Friday, May 16 at 8pm has been canceled due to Mr. Noble’s scheduling conflicts.
RON RIKFIN’s critically acclaimed performance as Isaac Geldhart in the original production of The Substance of Fire earned him the Obie, Drama Desk, Lucille Lortel, and Drama-Logue awards. He received the 1998 Tony Award for best supporting actor for the Broadway revival of Cabaret. Other theatre credits also include David Hirson’s Wrong Mountain, Arthur Miller’s Broken Glass, Turgenev’s Month in the Country, Neil Simon’s Proposals, Jon Robin Baitz’s 3 Hotels and The Paris Letter, among many others. His film credits include The Negotiator, L.A. Confidential, the film adaptation of The Substance of Fire, Woody Allen’s Husbands and Wives and Manhattan Murder Mystery, Last Summer in the Hamptons, Wolf, JFK, The Sting II, The Big Fix, The Sunshine Boys, Silent Running, Boiler Room and Keeping the Faith. He was a series regular on “Brothers and Sisters” and “Alias” and has appeared on “The Sunset Gang” and “Concealed Enemies” for PBS; “Buyer a Landslide” for BBC; “Evergreen,” The Winds of War,” and “Dress Gray;” and the series “The trials of Rosie O’Neill,” “One Day at a Time,” “ER,” “Law & Order,” “Falcon Crest,” “Soap,” “Hill Street Blues,” and “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.”
From the acclaimed playwright of Other Desert Cities, comes a story of a family bound by a proud past but facing an uncertain future. Isaac Geldhart, the volatile and brilliant patriarch of his family publishing house, is stubbornly holding on to his place at the head of the company while his three children try to convince him to publish a desperately needed best-seller. Faced with a changing literary landscape and potential takeover of the company, the Geldhart children must either come to terms with their father and band together or break apart and forfeit the legacy he risked everything to build. Articulate and blessed with a lifesavingand cutting sense of humor, Isaac fights like a man with nothing to lose.
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THE SUBSTANCE OF FIRE will be performed through Sunday, May 25 on the following schedule: Tuesday at 7:00pm, Wednesday – Saturday at 8:00pm, Wednesday and Saturday at 2:00pm and Sunday at 3:00pm. There will be no performance on Friday, May 16.
Tickets are $80 and may be purchased by phoning 212-246-4422 or online at www.2ST.com.
$30 UNDER 30 YOUTH ADVANCE TICKETS AVAILABLE – patrons age 30 and under may purchase a limited number of specially-priced $30 tickets in advance. Proof of age must be shown at the box office.
Group tickets are available at a discount by phoning 212-246-4422.
Box-office hours are Monday, 10:00am – 6:00pm, Tuesday 10:00am – 7:00pm, Wednesday through Saturday, 10:00am to 8:00pm, and Sunday, 10:00am to 3:00pm.
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ABOUT SECOND STAGE THEATRE
Founded in 1979 under the leadership of Artistic Director Carole Rothman, SECOND STAGE THEATRE produces a diverse range of premieres and new interpretations of America’s best contemporary theatre, including Tiny Alice and Peter and Jerry by Edward Albee; The Good Times Are Killing Me by Lynda Barry; The Little Dog Laughed by Douglas Carter Beane; Little Murders by Jules Feiffer; The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee by William Finn and Rachel Sheinkin; A Soldier’s Play by Charles Fuller; Afterbirth: Kathy & Mo’s Greatest Hits by Mo Gaffney and Kathy Najimy; Becky Shaw by Gina Gionfriddo; Painting Churches and Coastal Disturbances by Tina Howe; Ricky Jay and His 52 Assistants and On the Stem by Ricky Jay; Next to Normal by Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey; Living Out by Lisa Loomer; This Is Our Youth and The Waverly Gallery by Kenneth Lonergan; Some Men by Terrence McNally; By the Way, Meet Vera Stark by Lynn Nottage; eurydice by Sarah Ruhl; Everyday Rapture by Dick Scanlan and Sherie Rene Scott; Let Me Down Easy by Anna Deavere Smith; Saturday Night by Stephen Sondheim; Crowns by Regina Taylor; Uncommon Women and Others by Wendy Wasserstein; Spoils of War by Michael Weller; Before It Hits Home, Jar the Floor and Birdie Blue by Cheryl L. West; Jitney by August Wilson; Lemon Sky, Serenading Louie and Sympathetic Magic by Lanford Wilson; and Metamorphoses and The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci by Mary Zimmerman.
The company’s more than 130 citations include the 2010 Pulitzer prize for Next to Normal, the 2009 Tony Awards for Best Score, Best Orchestrations, and Best Actress in a Musical (Alice Ripley) for Next to Normal, the 2007 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play (Julie White, The Little Dog Laughed), 2005 Tony Awards for Best Book of a Musical (Rachel Sheinkin, …Spelling Bee) and Best Featured Actor in a Musical (Dan Fogler, …Spelling Bee), 2002 Tony Award for Best Director of a Play (Mary Zimmerman for Metamorphoses), the 2002 Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Body of Work, 27 Obie Awards, six Outer Critics Circle Awards, two Clarence Derwent Awards, 12 Drama Desk Awards, nine Theatre World Awards, 14 Lucille Lortel Awards, the NY Drama Critics Circle Award and 15 AUDELCO Awards.
In 1999, Second Stage Theatre opened The Tony Kiser Theatre, its state-of-the-art, 296-seat theatre, designed by renowned Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas. In 2002, Second Stage launched “Second Stage Theatre Uptown” series to showcase the work of up and coming artists at the McGinn/Cazale Theatre. The Theatre supports artists through several programs that include residencies, fellowships and commissions, and engages students and community members through education and outreach programs.
SECOND STAGE THEATRE AT THE HELEN HAYES
Second Stage Theatre has acquiredthe right to purchase the historic Helen Hayes Theatre, located at 240 W. 44th Street. With this new home, Second Stage will be the only theatre company on Broadway dedicated exclusively to the development and presentation of contemporary American theatrical productions. Second Stage will also become one of only four non-profit theatre companies that own and operate theatres on Broadway. The company will continue to lease and operate their original theatres on the city’s Upper West Side and in Midtown Manhattan.
For more information, please visit www.2ST.com
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