MANCHESTER BY THE SEA's Lucas Hedges to Star in YEN at MCC Theater

MCC Theater announced today that breakout actor Lucas Hedges -- whose performance opposite Casey Affleck in the film festival favorite Manchester by the Sea, written and directed by Kenneth Lonergan, is garnering rave reviews ahead of its November 18 theatrical release -- will lead the cast of the American premiere of YEN, Anna Jordan's Bruntwood Prize-winning play, directed by MCC alum Trip Cullman.

"Those of us lucky enough to have already seen Kenneth Lonergan's new film Manchester by the Sea can agree that this year 'a star is born' in the incredibly gifted Lucas Hedges," said Co-Artistic Director Bernie Telsey. "MCC has a great legacy of working early-on with emerging stage artists, so we're particularly excited that Lucas will be sharing his unbelievably expressive gifts as an actor-in his stage debut!-in Anna Jordan's beautiful new play."

YEN begins performances on January 12, 2017 ahead of a January 30 opening night. It is currently scheduled through February 19, 2017 at the Lucille Lortel Theatre (121 Christopher Street). Additional casting will be announced at a later date. Tickets will go on sale to the general public on November 30. Priority booking for subscribers and patrons begins on November 15. For tickets and info, visit www.mcctheater.org.

Lucas Hedges just received a Gotham Award nomination for 'Breakthrough Actor' for his performance in the aforementioned Manchester by the Sea. He will next be seen in Greta Gerwig's directorial debut, the Scott Rudin-produced Lady Bird, in which Hedges stars opposite Saoirse Ronan and Tracy Letts; as well as the next film from Academy Award winner Martin McDonagh, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri opposite Frances McDormand and Peter Dinklage. Hedges, in a short span, has worked with some of Hollywood's most dynamic filmmakers, including twice with Wes Anderson (Moonrise Kingdom and The Grand Budapest Hotel), plus Jason Reitman (Labor Day opposite Josh Brolin and Kate Winslet), Terry Gilliam (The Zero Theorem opposite Christoph Waltz), Michael Cuesta (Kill the Messenger opposite Jeremy Renner), and Dante Ariola (Arthur Newman opposite Colin Firth and Emily Blunt). For television, he memorably appeared opposite Zachary Quinto in NBC's event series "The Slap" directed by Lisa Cholodenko and Ken Olin.

In YEN, Bobbie and Hench are home alone. Days are filled by streaming porn, playing Call of Duty, watching the world go by. Their mom rarely visits these days, and it's chaos when she does. But when animal-loving neighbor Jenny takes an interest in their dog Taliban, the boys discover a world far beyond what they know. YEN explores a childhood lived without boundaries.

YEN, which marks the MCC debut of playwright Anna Jordan, joins recent MCC productions The Pride and The Nether which also had American Premieres at MCC after debuting with World Premieres at the Royal Court in London. Director Trip Cullman returns to MCC following his OBIE-winning work on Punk Rock and most recently Halley Feiffer's A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Gynecologic Oncology Unit At Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center of New York City.

MCC Theater broke ground on its first permanent home- a two-theater complex on West 52nd Street and 10th Avenue-on March 22, 2016. Set to open in 2018, the space will unite MCC's diverse roster of programs under one roof for the first time in the company's three-decade history. The new facility will also allow MCC to expand its programming and establish it as a cultural anchor within the Clinton neighborhood. The $35 million project is funded by a public-private partnership between the Theater and the City of New York, with $30 million raised to-date.

MCC is one of New York's leading nonprofit Off-Broadway companies, driven by a mission to provoke conversations that have never happened and otherwise never would. Founded in 1986 as a collective of artists leading peer-based classes to support their own development as actors, writers and directors, the tenets of collaboration, education, and community are at the core of MCC Theater's programming. One of the only theaters in the country led continuously by its founders, Artistic Directors Robert LuPone, Bernard Telsey, and William Cantler, MCC fulfills its mission through the production of world, American, and New York premiere plays and musicals that challenge artists and audiences to confront contemporary personal and social issues, and robust playwright development and education initiatives that foster the next generation of theater artists and students.

Plays and musicals developed by the company have gone on to stagings around the globe. Notable productions over the course of the company's 30-year history include Robert Askins' Hand to God, nominated for five Tony Awards and transferred to London's West End; Sharr White's The Other Place, starring Laurie Metcalf; The Submission by Jeff Talbot, winner of the inaugural Laurents/Hatcher Foundation Award for new American plays; Bryony Lavery's Frozen, a 2004 Tony nominee for Best play and winner for Brian F. O'Byrne's performance; Wit by Margaret Edson, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1999; the classic cult musical Carrie, which has gone on to international productions since the Theater's extensive redevelopment work and staging in 2012, the first in more than two decades; and ten plays by Playwright-in-Residence Neil LaBute, including Fat Pig; reasons to be pretty, a 2009 Tony nominee for Best Play; Reasons to Be Happy; and All The Ways To Say I Love You . Blake West joined the company in 2006 as Executive Director. MCC will open its first permanent home in 2018 in Manhattan's Clinton neighborhood, unifying the company's activities under one roof for the first time and expanding its producing, artist development, and education programming. The Theater is currently in the midst of a $35 million campaign to support its expansion and growing artistic operations, with $30 million raised to-date.

Lucas Hedges is a versatile young actor on the rise who has already worked with some of the most respected directors in Hollywood.

Hedges recently wrapped production on Greta Gerwig's directorial debut, LADY BIRD. He stars alongside Saoirse Ronan and Tracy Letts. The film follows the adventures of a young woman living in Northern California for a year. Scott Rudin is producing the film.

He also recently wrapped production on Martin McDonagh's film THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI where he stars opposite Frances McDormand and Peter Dinklage. The film will be released by Fox Searchlight Pictures in 2017.

Hedges will next be seen in Kenneth Lonergan's MANCHESTER BY THE SEA, which will be released by Amazon Studios and Roadside Attractions on November 18, 2016. He recently received a Gotham Award nomination for Breakthrough Actor for his work in the film as "Patrick," a teenage boy whose uncle (Casey Affleck) is forced to take care of him after his father (Kyle Chandler) suddenly passes away. The cast also features Michelle Williams and Gretchen Mol. The film had its world premiere at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival to critical acclaim and was acquired by Amazon. The film was also shown at both Telluride Film Festival as well the Toronto International Film Festival to a standing ovation.

For Wes Anderson, Hedges appeared in MOONRISE KINGDOM, alongside Edward Norton, Bill Murray and Frances McDormand; and then again in 2014's Oscar-winning THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL. In 2013 he worked with Jason Reitman, alongside Josh Brolin and Kate Winslet in LABOR DAY, and starred opposite Christoph Waltz in Terry Gilliam's THE ZERO THEOREM.

Hedges has also appeared in such films as Michael Cuesta's KILL THE MESSENGER, opposite Jeremy Renner and Dante Ariola's Arthur Newman, alongside Colin Firth and Emily Blunt.

On television Hedges starred in the NBC event series, THE SLAP, opposite Zachary Quinto, Peter Sarsgaard and Uma Thurman, and again had an opportunity to work with directors Lisa Cholodenko and Ken Olin.

When not in school, he resides with his family in Brooklyn, New York.

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