Matthew Broderick Joins The New Group Production of EVENING AT THE TALK HOUSE

The New Group announces today that two-time Tony Award winner Matthew Broderick joins Wallace Shawn's Evening at the Talk House, with, as previously announced, Jill Eikenberry, John Epperson, Larry Pine, Wallace Shawn, Claudia Shear, Annapurna Sriram and Michael Tucker, representing full casting for this U.S. premiere directed by Scott Elliott.

Previews for Evening at the Talk House begin January 31 in advance of an Official Opening Night on February 16 at The Pershing Square Signature Center (The Romulus Linney Courtyard Theatre, 480 West 42nd Street). A limited Off-Broadway engagement is slated through March 12.

Remember when we felt we could do anything, when there was still nothing to fear? Yes, things have changed a bit, haven't they? And people keep saying there's nothing to be afraid of! In Wallace Shawn's Evening at the Talk House, everyone's invited to join the company of Robert (Matthew Broderick)'s under-appreciated masterpiece, Midnight in a Clearing with Moon and Stars, at a get-together to raise a toast on the 10th anniversary of its opening night. To recall that wonderful creative atmosphere, which we all miss so much, Nellie (Jill Eikenberry) will host this celebration at the old haunt, the Talk House (which, despite everything, remains open). Please come. We need each other.

Evening at the Talk House features Matthew Broderick as Robert, Jill Eikenberry as Nellie, John Epperson as Ted, Larry Pine as Tom, Wallace Shawn as Dick, Claudia Shear as Annette, Annapurna Sriram as Jane and Michael Tucker as Bill.
Directed by Scott Elliott, this production features Scenic Design by Derek McLane, Costume Design by Jeff Mahshie and Lighting Design by Jennifer Tipton. Production Supervisor is Production Core.

Production Stage Manager is Valerie A. Peterson. Casting is by Judy Henderson, CSA.

This new production of Evening at the Talk House, a U.S. premiere, reunites Wallace Shawn and director Scott Elliott, whose previous collaborations for The New Group include Aunt Dan and Lemon, The Fever and Marie and Bruce. Evening at the Talk House premiered in November 2015 at the National Theatre.

The New Group's 2016-2017 season launched with the current production Sweet Charity choreographed by Joshua Bergasse, directed by Leigh Silverman and starring Sutton Foster (now through January 8); and continues with Wallace Shawn's Evening at the Talk House, directed by Scott Elliott; the world premiere of All the Fine Boys, from writer and director Erica Schmidt, with Abigail Breslin, Isabelle Fuhrman, Joe Tippett and Alex Wolff (begins February 14, 2017); and the world premiere of The Whirligig, by Hamish Linklater, directed by Scott Elliott, with Norbert Leo Butz, Zosia Mamet and Maura Tierney (begins May 2, 2017; additional casting to be announced).

Subscriptions and memberships for The New Group's 2016-2017 season are available now. For subscription purchases and season info, please visit www.thenewgroup.org. Subscriptions can also be purchased by calling Ticket Central at (212) 279-4200, or in person at 416 West 42nd Street (12-8pm daily).

Tickets for Evening at the Talk House, on sale now, start at $75. Performance schedule as follows: Tuesday - Friday at 7:30pm, Saturday at 2:00pm & 8:00pm and Sunday at 2:00pm.

Evening at the Talk House is generously supported by The Laura Pels International Foundation for Theater.

The New Group is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council. The New Group's productions are made possible, in part, by New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.

The New Group (Scott Elliott, Artistic Director; Adam Bernstein, Executive Director) is an award-winning, artist-driven company with a commitment to developing and producing powerful, contemporary theater. While constantly evolving, the company strives to maintain an ensemble approach to all its work and an articulated style of emotional immediacy in its productions. In this way, The New Group seeks a theater that is adventurous, stimulating and most importantly "now," a true forum for the present culture.

In summer 2016, The New Group was represented in London by the acclaimed production of Jesse Eisenberg's The Spoils, directed by Scott Elliott, at Trafalgar Studios. The New Group is presently represented in London, again at Trafalgar Studios, by the company's hit production of Sam Shepard's Buried Child, starring Ed Harris and Amy Madigan, directed by Scott Elliott.

The New Group's 2015-2016 Season featured the Off-Broadway premiere of Philip Ridley's Mercury Fur, directed by Scott Elliott, a Critics' Pick in The New York Times; Steve, the critically-acclaimed world premiere of a new play by Mark Gerrard, directed by Cynthia Nixon, which enjoyed an extended run; the twice-extended hit production of Sam Shepard's Buried Child, directed by Scott Elliott, with Taissa Farmiga, Ed Harris, Amy Madigan, Larry Pine, Rich Sommer, Paul Sparks and Nat Wolff; and the New York premiere of Justin Kuritzkes' The Sensuality Party, developed through The New Group's New Group/New Works play development program and performed at college campuses across all five boroughs of New York City.

The New Group celebrated its 20th Anniversary during the 2014-2015 Season, which included David Rabe's Sticks and Bones, directed by Scott Elliott, with Holly Hunter, and Bill Pullman; Joel Drake Johnson's Rasheeda Speaking, with Tonya Pinkins and Dianne Wiest, helmed by Cynthia Nixon; and the world premiere of Jesse Eisenberg's The Spoils, directed by Scott Elliott, with Jesse Eisenberg and Kunal Nayyar.

Other notable productions include Ecstasy, This is Our Youth, Aunt Dan and Lemon, Hurlyburly, Abigail's Party, Rafta, Rafta..., The Starry Messenger, A Lie of the Mind, Blood From a Stone, Marie and Bruce, The Jacksonian, Intimacy and many more. The company has received nearly 100 awards and nominations for excellence. The New Group is a recipient of the 2004 Tony Award for Best Musical (Avenue Q). In 2011, The Kid received five Drama Desk nominations and the Outer Critics Award for Outstanding New Off-Broadway Musical. That year, The New Group and Scott Elliott were honored with a Drama Desk Special Award "for presenting contemporary new voices, and for uncompromisingly raw and powerful productions."
The Pershing Square Signature Center, the permanent home of Signature Theatre, is a three-theatre facility on West 42nd Street designed by Frank Gehry Architects to host Signature's three distinct playwrights' residencies and foster a cultural community. The Center is a major contribution to New York City's cultural landscape and provides a venue for cultural organizations that supports and encourages collaboration among artists throughout the space. In addition to its three intimate theatres, the Center features a Studio Theatre, rehearsal studio, a bookstore, and Signature Café and Bar, open to public from noon-midnight Tuesdays-Sundays.

For more information on renting the Center, please visit www.signaturetheatre.org/rentals.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride / WM Photos