Ansa Akyea, Emily Gunyou Halaas and More Set for the Guthrie's CLYBOURNE PARK

The Guthrie Theater today announced complete casting for its production of 2011 Pulitzer Prize and 2012 Tony Award winner Clybourne Park by Bruce Norris, the biting, powerhouse contemporary satire about race and gentrification during the past half century in America. Written in response to Lorraine Hansberry's classic A Raisin in the Sun, Clybourne Park has sparked conversation and dialogue across America wherever it has played. Lisa Peterson (Guthrie: Major Barbara, Oedipus) returns to direct another great, biting American story at the Guthrie after last year's lauded production of Tennessee Williams' Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.

Norris' ingenious dramatic structure takes place in two acts separated by fifty years, with actors playing different roles from Act One to Act Two. The cast for Clybourne Park includes Ansa Akyea (Guthrie: The Burial at Thebes, The Winter's Tale) as Albert/Kevin, Shá Cage as Francine/Lena, Emily Gunyou Halaas (Guthrie: Much Ado About Nothing, The Master Butchers Singing Club) as Betsy/Lindsey, Peter Christian Hansen (Guthrie: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Dollhouse) as Jim/Tom, Steven Lee Johnson (Twin Cities: Park Square Theatre, Theater Latté Da) as Kenneth, Jim Lichtscheidl (Guthrie: Arms and the Man, The 39 Steps) as Karl/Steve, Bill McCallum (Guthrie: Tales from Hollywood, Time Stands Still) as Russ/Dan and Kathryn Meisle (Guthrie: The Real Thing, Three Sisters; Broadway: Tartuffe, A Touch of the Poet) as Bev/Kathy.

The artistic team includes Rachel Hauck (Set Designer), David Zinn (Costume Designer), Mark Barton (Lighting Designer), Reid Resja (Sound Designer), Carla Steen (Dramaturg), Karen Wagner (Stage Manager), Michele Harms (Assistant Stage Manager) and Jennie Ward (Assistant Director).

Clybourne Park begins preview performances on June 1, opens June 7 and continues through August 4, 2013 on the McGuire Proscenium Stage at the Guthrie Theater. Single tickets start at $29 and are now on sale through the Guthrie Box Office at 612.377.2224, toll-free 877.44.STAGE, 612.225.6244 (Group Sales) and online at www.guthrietheater.org.

The GUTHRIE THEATER (Joe Dowling, Director) was founded by Sir Tyrone Guthrie in 1963 and is an American center for theater performance, production, education and professional training. The Tony Award-winning Guthrie Theater is dedicated to producing the great works of dramatic literature, developing the work of contemporary playwrights and cultivating the next generation of theater artists. With annual attendance of nearly 500,000 people, the Guthrie Theater presents a mix of classic plays and contemporary work on its three stages. Under the artistic leadership of Joe Dowling since 1995, the Guthrie continues to set a national standard for excellence in theatrical production and performance. In 2006, the Guthrie opened its new home on the banks of the Mississippi River in Minneapolis. Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Jean Nouvel, the Guthrie Theater houses three state-of-the-art stages, production facilities, classrooms and dramatic public lobbies. www.guthrietheater.org

To post a comment, you must register and login.