Jill Eikenberry to Lead in Jack Canfora's JERICHO at 59E59 Theaters, Begin 10/4

59E59 Theaters (Elysabeth Kleinhans, Artistic Director; Peter Tear, Executive Producer) welcomes the return of The Directors Company with the New York premiere of JERICHO, written by Jack Canfora and directed by Evan Bergman. JERICHO begins performances on Friday, October 4 for a limited engagement through Sunday, November 3. Press opening is Thursday, October 10 at 7:15 PM. The performance schedule is Tuesday - Thursday at 7:15 PM; Friday at 8:15 PM; Saturday at 2:15 PM & 8:15 PM; and Sunday at 3:15 PM. Please note, there are no performances on Thursday, October 17 and Friday, October 18. Performances are at 59E59 Theaters (59 East 59th Street, between Park and Madison Avenues). Tickets are $35 ($24.50 for 59E59 Members). To purchase tickets, call Ticket Central at (212) 279-4200 or go to www.59e59.org.

Following the success of Poetic License in 2012, Jack Canfora, Evan Bergman and The Directors Company reteam for the New York premiere of JERICHO, starring Jill Eikenberry. Set in Manhattan and its suburbs, a family struggles to come to terms with personal and political upheaval over one Thanksgiving holiday spent in Jericho, Long Island. With biting wit and humor, Canfora's play is a thought-provoking exploration of how people cope with collective and personal tragedy.

Joining Jill Eikenberry in the cast are Noel Joseph Allain (The Name Means Public Spirited at Target Margin Theater); Eleanor Handley (Limonade Tous les Jour with Austin Pendleton); Kevin Isola (The Boys in the Band with Transport Group); Andrew Rein (Acts of Love at the Kirk Theater); and Carol Todd (Lee Blessing's Whores co-produced by Playwright's Theatre and NJ Rep).

The design team includes Jessica L. Parks (scenic design); Jill Nagle (lighting design); Tony Award-nominated Michael McDonald (costume design); and John Emmett O'Brien (sound design). The production stage manager is Rose Riccardi.

The National New Play Network World Premiere of JERICHO was produced through the NNPN Continued Life Fund by the New Jersey Repertory Company (Long Branch, NJ), Phoenix Theatre (Indianapolis, IN), and Florida Studio Theatre (Sarasota, FL).

Jack Canfora's (playwright) plays have been read and performed throughout the United States and England since 2001. His first full length play, Place Setting, was read in Los Angeles in September, 2005 and starred Steven Weber and Jon Cryer. In June 2007, the New Jersey Repertory Theatre staged Place Setting. The New York Times wrote that the play has "unusually punchy writing" while the New Jersey Star-Ledger raved that the play is "funny and fascinating," had "wonderfully incisive wit" and "tells the truth about how 21st century men and women view relationships." The paper named it, along with plays by Teresa Rebeck, Elaine May and Edward Albee as one of the best plays of 2007. His play Poetic License finished an acclaimed run Off-Broadway at 59E59 Theaters. The Associated Press called the play "tense, articulate and impressive - white hot," Time Out New York hailed it as "witty and eloquent" and The New York Times deemed it "a smart, unsettling drama." Jericho was named a winner of the 2010 National New Play Network and premiered this October at The New Jersey Repertory Company as one of three theaters producing it as part of the NNPN's Rolling World Premiere series. His play Fellow Travelers, directed by Jack O'Brien, will premiere on Broadway in the spring of 2013.

Evan Bergman (Director) recently directed the World Premiere of Love Therapy with two-time Tony Award nominee Alison Frazer at the Daryl Roth Theater, the New York premiere of Jack Canfora's Poetic License featuring Geraint Wyn Davies for New Jersey Rep and The Directors Company at 59E59, and the world premiere of Jack Canfora's Jericho for New Jersey Rep. Other credits include The Glass House with Harris Yulin (three IT Award nominations including best actor and best ensemble); world premiere of The Tangled Skirt by Steve Braunstein (New Jersey Rep, nominated for 2011 EDGAR Award-Best Mystery/Thriller); the critically acclaimed New York and Los Angeles productions of The Director starring John Shea; the first all African American production of American Buffalo featuring Reg E. Cathey and Paul Butler (W.H.A.T); Gryzk (Ensemble Studio Theater Marathon); Place Setting by Jack Canfora and Lemonade by Mike Folie (both for New Jersey Rep); the world premiere of the musical A Girl Called Dusty (Provincetown Playhouse); Paul Scott Goodman's musical Tiny Dancer (One Dream); the Off Broadway premiere of Bobbi Boland with Gregg Henry; and Machiavelli by Richard Vetere (ArcLight). His work has also been seen at Naked Angels, Rattlestick, the Samuel Beckett, West Bank, and Jane Street Theaters. In Los Angeles: The Odyssey, The Tiffany and Actor's Lab Theater. His film credits include John Ford Noonan's Dig A Hole, Find A Finger (official selection at the Palm Springs and Newport Beach International Film Festivals) and a documentary for Warner Music Group and Edge recording artist G Tom Mac, which featured Roger Daltry (The Who) and Philip Bailey (Earth, Wind and Fire).

Photo by Walter McBride