Novato Theater Co Opens Searching Drama 4000 MILES Tonight

After suffering a major loss while on a cross-country bike trip, a young man, Leo, seeks solace from his feisty grandmother, Vera, in her Greenwich Village apartment. Over the course of a single month, these unlikely roommates infuriate, bewilder and ultimately reach each other. Vera and Leo use their anti-heroic, sometimes annoying attributes in sparring with each other. 4000 Miles looks at how two outsiders find their way in today's world.

Novato Theater Company presents Amy Herzog's Obie Award-winning 4000 MILES now through April 17 at the NTC Playhouse, 5420 Nave Dr., Novato 94949. The play is directed by Norman A. Hall and features Shirley Nilsen Hall as Vera and Jesse Lumb as Leo. It is produced for NTC by Kim Bromley. 4000 Miles is presented by special arrangement with Samuel French, Inc.

With this production of 4000 Miles, Novato Theater Company brings together an experienced theatrical team. Director Norman Hall and Shirley Nilsen Hall, who plays Vera, have been husband and wife for 34 years, working in theater together all that time. "They brought NTC the award-winning Steel Magnolias a few seasons back and we're thrilled they are bringing us 4000 Miles now," says producer Kim Bromley. Bromley was the director of this season's musical, Into the Woods, as well as the award-winning Next to Normal in 2014.

Cast and Home Cities:

Vera Joseph - Shirley Nilsen Hall (Novato)

Leo Joseph-Connell - Jesse Lumb (San Rafael)

Bec - Emily Radosevich (Lafayette)

Amanda - Courtney Yuen (Fairfield)

Photo Credit: Kim Bromley

Notes from the Director - Norman A. Hall

What immediately attracted me to "4000 Miles" was the language. Amy Herzog has an ear for contemporary conversational language that is skillfully accompanied by her deep understanding of human nature. Here, she has the ability to bridge several generations in her interplay of characters and combine them with a coming of age experience. I am also attracted to plays that give an actor the chance to explore the psyche of the person being played. At auditions, I was immediately overwhelmed by the grasp the actors had of their characters and at rehearsals they immediately got into their skins and refined their roles. So, I have to say in conclusion, with the help of some of the best production people available, audiences will be in for a treat.

The play premiered Off-Broadway in June of 2011 at the Duke Theatre. It was presented again at Lincoln Center in 2012 as the first play in Lincoln Center Theater's new works program. 4000 Miles won the 2012 Obie Award for Best New American Play, and was named Time Magazine 's #1 Play or Musical of that year.

Time magazine wrote: "Herzog unravels the details slowly, with uncommon narrative skill....Everything about 4000 Miles seems fresh, particularized, plausible....It is the family drama that really sticks with you, easily the best play of the season."

Herzog received a Masters in Fine Arts from the Yale School of Drama. Her teachers included Richard Nelson and John Guare. Jim Nicola, producer of Herzog's Belleville at the New York Theatre Workshop, said that "the distinction of Herzog's work is her belief that private, individual experience is always inseparable from public, historical processes, when she explores human lives."

CURTAIN TIMES AND TICKETS:

Venue: NTC Playhouse, 5420 Nave Dr., Novato

Opens: Tonight, March 26 at 8:00 pm

Runs: Fridays and Saturdays: 8:00 pm; Sundays: 2:00 pm, through April 17

Running Time:

Tickets: $27 Adults, $21 NTC Members and Subscribers, $24 Seniors/Students, $12 Children 12 and under, $15 Preview. Online ticketing at www.novatotheatercompany.org; call (415) 883-4498 for questions/information only. No credit cards accepted at the theater box office for walk ups, cash or checks only. Open Seating • Free Parking • ADA Compliant