Mark Roberts' NEW COUNTRY to Open at Cherry Lane Theatre in May

Following a career as an stand-up comedian, actor and writer, Mark Roberts is set to premiere New Country, his eighth play, at the Cherry Lane Theatre on May 16-June 20. Best known for his TV work on Two and a Half Men and Mike & Molly, Roberts trained as an actor and began his theater career in 1982 outside Chicago, where he first worked with New Country's director David Harwell.

In New Country, country music star Justin Spears has the world on their knees. He's a good ole bad boy, a thankless... shameless... phony... user... you get the idea, that's tying the knot tomorrow; but tonight, he's tying one on. He's going to party hardy with his entourage of ruthless, calculating managers, faux fans and friends, his favorite pig-farming uncle and a plastic model. So how does this rowdy, raucous, rodeo go so wrong...so fast?

Welcome to the New Country, where the hits just keep on comin'. Where the phoniness is phoned in and the egos, reality and people are full of hot air - sometimes literally. When the chickens come home to roost, will Justin come out on top, or will his career go pop?

The cast of New Country includes Malcolm Madera as Paul, Jared Culverhouse as Chuck, Stephen Sheffer as Ollie, David Lind as Justin, Mark Roberts as Uncle Jim and Sarah Lemp as Sharon.

The creative team includes David Harwell (Sets and Lighting), Heather Baumbach (Costumes), Johnna Doty (Sound) and Jaimie Van Dyke (Stage Manager), Kelcie Beene (Producer) and Anchor Watch, LLC (Production Management).

Performances of New Country will take place May 16-June 20 (see schedule above) at the Cherry Lane Theatre. Critics are welcome as of May 16 at 3pm for an official opening of May 20 at 7pm. The running time is 75 minutes with no intermission. The Cherry Lane Theatre is located at 38 Commerce Street in Manhattan. Tickets are $35 and can be purchased by visiting rattlestick.org or calling 212-352-3101.

New Country is sponsored by University of Alabama in Huntsville.

About the Artists

In his first life as a comedian, Mark Roberts (playwright, actor) appeared several times on The Tonight Show, as well as comedy specials on Fox, HBO, and Showtime. He also performed at the comedy festivals in Montreal, Toronto and Aspen.

In his second life as an actor, Mark was seen on such shows as Seinfeld, Friends, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, The Larry Sanders Show, The Practice, and was a series regular on The Naked Truth starring Téa Leoni. He's also in the movies Bulletproof, Next of Kin, and Meet the Applegates.

In Roberts's third life, as a writer, he has penned the stage plays Welcome to Tolono, Enter at Forrest Lawn, Whitey, Couples Counseling Killed Katie, Rantoul and Die, Paradise Drag, and Where the Great Ones Run. The latter three are published by Dramatists Play Service and performed around the country and as far away as Stockholm, Sweden. He also spent seven years as head writer and executive producer on Two and a Half Men, three seasons as an executive consultant on The Big Bang Theory and three seasons as creator-show runner and occasional director on Mike and Molly.

In his next life he hopes to learn to cook, play the guitar and die a good death. After which he'll spend eternity hanging out with Hank Williams, Johnny Cash and his Grandpa Joe, trying like hell to make them laugh.

David Harwell (director) has designed at The New England Conservatory of Music, Boston Lyric Opera, Central City Opera, Playwright's Horizons, Second Stage Theatre, Pittsburgh Opera Theatre, Delaware Theatre Company, Penguin Repertory Company, Washington and Lee University, University of Kentucky, University of Alabama, William and Mary University and others. In 1998 He joined the Production Design Group in NYC as a production designer and project manager for the award winning company whose clients included NBC, CNBC, MSNBC, National Geographic, MTV, Court TV, A&E, History Channel, TNT and PBS. In 2001 he received a daytime Emmy Award for Set Design for Between the Lions. Theatrical productions include: Rantoul and Die (Ovation Nomination for set design); Couples Counseling Killed Katie (Director, Ovation Nomination for best play).

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