ASSASSINS Cast Including Brandon Uranowitz, Will Swenson & More to Take Part in CSC's New Online Programming

Classic Stage Company has announced the launch of a free, online version of their discussion series Classic Conversations, airing live Thursdays at 6pm on YouTube and Facebook, and available to view afterwards on these platforms and Instagram IGTV. Following CSC's postponement of their production of Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman's Assassins in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, Classic Conversations will feature members of the Assassins cast. They will speak (and occasionally sing), in conversation with director John Doyle, as they await the recommencement of rehearsals and a momentous opening at a later date.

The online series begins April 16 with a chat with three-time Tony nominee Brandon Uranowitz (Burn This, Falsettos), who plays Leon Czolgosz in the musical. It continues April 23 with Tony nominee Will Swenson (Hair, Waitress), who portrays Charles Guiteau; April 30 with Adam Chanler-Berat (Peter and the Starcatcher, Next to Normal), who plays John Hinckley, Jr.; and on May 7 with Tavi Gevinson (The Crucible, This Is Our Youth), who takes on the role of Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme. More online Classic Conversation talks will follow in ensuing weeks.

Classic Conversations was inaugurated in Winter, 2018, in an event with Raúl Esparza-coinciding with his celebrated title performance in CSC's production of Bertolt Brecht's The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui-in which he discussed his prolific career and sang "Marry Me a Little" from Company. These one-night-only events typically complement CSC's mainstage productions, and offer a singular glimpse into the lives and careers of those involved. Since their recent beginnings, the series has already become a treasured part of CSC's offerings, and has also featured events with Victoria Clark, Mary Beth Peil, Barbara Walsh, and Michael Cerveris. A previously announced conversation with four-time Tony nominee Judy Kuhn (Fiddler on the Roof, Fun Home)-who plays Sara Jane Moore in Assassins and on April 2 released special video message for CSC in response to our current crisis and the production's postponement-was scheduled for May 17 and has also been postponed. While the online series is free, CSC will be accepting donations online.

John Doyle says, "I'm delighted that we're able to launch an online series of Classic Conversations. This is the development of a program that has been very successful at Classic Stage. Each conversation is exactly that-a chat between myself and an artist who has a connection with our company. Very informal and relaxed, we loosely follow the format of the BBC Radio show 'Desert Island Discs.' The artist illuminates the conversation with songs or pieces of music that have been part of their personal journey-songs they would take to their imaginary Desert Island. I'm excited that this initiative is going to be shared more widely, and I look forward to a time where the 'remote' audience is able to join us for many more such conversations in our beautiful theater on 13th Street."

Assassins, which was set to begin previews April 2 before the suspension of rehearsals and ticket sales, will, upon its return to production, complete the trilogy of Sondheim/Weidman musicals John Doyle has directed. (Doyle has staged their other two collaborations-Pacific Overtures, at CSC in 2017, and Road Show, at The Public Theater in 2008 and London's Menier Chocolate Factory in 2011-to wide acclaim.) It is a journey through the dark side of the American dream that explores the lives of nine men and women who either killed (or tried to kill) one of the Presidents of the United States.