FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 7, 2014
Amy Herzog’s 4000 Miles opens April 2, 2014 in the
Historic Asolo Theater
“The best play of 2012, hands down.” – TIME magazine
“A funny, moving, altogether wonderful drama.” – The New York Times
“Herzog captures the way people behave when they don’t think they’re being closely watched. There’s an offbeat candor to her writing, an unsuspecting openness … Herzog artfully arranges these seemingly spontaneous moments into a meaningful dramatic journey.” – The Los Angeles Times
(SARASOTA, March 7, 2014) — Asolo Rep continues its 2013-2014 season and its celebration of the American family with Amy Herzog’s soulful inter-generational play 4000 MILES, a 2013 Pulitzer Prize finalist and 2012 Obie Award winner for Best New Play. Directed by Tea Alagić, previews will be April 2 – 3, opening night will be April 4 at 8pm and the play will run through April 27 in the Historic Asolo Theater.
Leo, a 21-year-old, laid-back hippie, and his 91-year-old, Jewish, old-school liberal grandma, Vera, are 70 years apart in age but find common ground in this smart comedy/drama. After a 4,000 mile cross-country bicycling trip, Leo unexpectedly shows up at his grandma’s rent-controlled Greenwich Village apartment in the middle of the night with his bike, a backpack and no plan for his future. While he plans to crash for the night, he stays for weeks and, as roommates, Leo and Vera share their polarizing views on love, government, technology, life and family. Leo encourages Vera to venture outside of the apartment she rarely leaves, and Vera challenges Leo to reevaluate his perspective on the world and the people he loves most. As their relationship deepens, this endearing odd couple’s friendship evolves into an extraordinary bond.
“As a parent, there is a particular structure that one must follow, but as a grandparent there is this wonderfully freeing gap. 4000 MILES spotlights and celebrates that special connection that occurs within that generational gap,” said Tea Alagić, director of 4000 MILES. “I’m really looking forward to working with Vera, who is actually based on playwright Herzog’s own grandma, and Leo, who is so seemingly different from his grandma at the start of the play. That contrast in characters is a director’s dream.”
The play premiered at the Duke on 42nd Street in New York as part of the Lincoln Center Theater/LCT3 Steinberg New Works Program. 4000 MILES had its off-Broadway premiere at the Lincoln Center Theater’s Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater in April 2012. The play continues the second season of Asolo Rep’s American Character Project, a five-year examination of this country and its people. The generations that separate Leo and Vera, and their ability to come together regardless of their vastly different backgrounds, exemplify the heart of the American spirit.
“One of the best new plays of the season, this surprisingly profound inter-generational comedy examines the special bond between a grandson and his grandmother. Amy Herzog has captured a sincere familial intimacy that is rarely found on stage and is universally relatable,” said Michael Donald Edwards, Producing Artistic Director of Asolo Rep.
CAST
(In order of appearance)
Benjamin Williamson
Lois Markle*
Maxey Whitehead
Lisa Dring* |
Leo Joseph-Connell
Vera Joseph
Bec
Amanda |
*Members of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.
SELECTED CREATIVE TEAM MEMBERS
Director
Scenic Design
Costume Design
Lighting Design
Sound Design |
Tea Alagić
Marsha Ginsberg
Alixandra Gage Englund
Gina Scherr
Jane Shaw |
SPECIAL PUBLIC PROGRAMMING
Inside Asolo Rep
Wednesday, March 26 at 11am – on the Mezzanine
Featuring director Tea Alagić, this special backstage discussion will shed light on the artistic process behind 4000 MILES. Tickets for this insightful event are $5 for the general public and free for Asolo Rep Guild Members and donors.
Tickets are available by visiting www.asolorep.org, going to the Asolo Rep Box Office, located in the lobby of the theatre, or by calling 941.351.8000 or 800.361.8388.
Tuesday Talkbacks
Share an intimate discussion on the themes of the play. Talkbacks are free and begin immediately following the 7:30pm performance.
* This talkback will also feature special guest Jay Handelman, Theater and TV Critic at the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
A Grand Event
Held on Saturday, April 19 at 2pm, Asolo Rep will celebrate the unique relationship of grandparents and their grandchildren at a performance featuring a discount ticket offer and a post-show discussion with the cast of 4000 MILES.
SELECTED ARTIST BIOS
(In Alphabetical Order)
LOIS MARKLE* (Vera Joseph) Broadway: Hedda Gabler; True West (with Philip Seymour Hoffman); The Grapes of Wrath; Something Old, Something New (with Hans Conried); A Warm Body (opposite Kevin McCarthy); Calculated Risk (with Joseph Cotten). Some Off Broadway credits include: The American Dream/The Sandbox (directed by Edward Albee); and Curse of the Starving Class. Tours include: Three Tall Women; Present Laughter (opposite Louis Jourdan); and One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (opposite Robert Forster). Regional Theatre: August: Osage County (Craig Noel Award winner, Outstanding Female Lead Performance); and Three Tall Women (Joseph Jefferson Award nominee, Best Actress), among others. Television and Film credits include: The Sopranos; Sex & The City; Law & Order; Torn Between Two Lovers; Breaking Up; and Coming Apart.
BENJAMIN WILLIAMSON (Leo Joseph-Connell, 4000 MILES; Trip Wyeth, Asolo Rep’s Other Desert Cities) is a graduate of Binghamton University with a B.A. in honors for Acting and Directing. FSU/Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training credits includes Romeo, Romeo & Juliet; Antonio, Twelfth Night; KJ, The Aliens; and Eugene Marchbanks, Candida.
TICKETS
Tickets for 4000 MILES and the entire 2013-14 Asolo Repertory Theatre season are on sale now. Tickets for 4000 MILES start at $15. To purchase tickets, call 941.351.8000 or 800.361.8388, visit www.asolorep.org, or visit the Asolo Repertory Theatre Box Office, located in the lobby of the theatre. Asolo Repertory Theatre is located at 5555 North Tamiami Trail in the Florida State University Center for the Performing Arts. Box office hours are Monday 10am – 4pm, Tuesday – Saturday 10am – 8pm, and Sunday 10am – 2pm. The box office closes at 5pm when there are no evening performances and phone lines close one hour prior to the start of any performance. Season subscription packages are also available online and by visiting or calling the box office.
SPONSORS
Asolo Rep is able to bring 4000 MILES to the stage thanks to the generosity of its sponsors. Corporate sponsors are the Jewish Federation of Sarasota – Manatee, Treviso/Mezzacorona, and 92.1 The Coast. Asolo Rep’s season sponsors are Florida State University, Gulf Coast Community Foundation, Designing Women Boutique, Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, and The Woman’s Exchange, Inc. Asolo Rep’s artistic programs are paid for in part by Sarasota County Tourist Development Tax revenues. Asolo Rep is sponsored in part by the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture.
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