Geffen Playhouse Presents The West Coast Premiere Of THE NICETIES

Geffen Playhouse will present the West Coast premiere of The Niceties, it was announced today, written by Eleanor Burgess (Chill, Start Down) and directed by Kimberly Senior (Disgraced, Career Suicide). This world premiere production of The Niceties is currently running at McCarter Theatre Center in New Jersey, and replaces Antigone on The Geffen Playhouse 2018/2019 season lineup.

The production features Lisa Banes (Present Laughter on Broadway, Gone Girl) as the professor Janine, and Jordan Boatman (Hulu's The Path) as the student Zoe, in this story of a white professor and a black student who become involved in a polite clash of perspectives that quickly explodes into an urgent and dangerous debate threatening to ruin both their lives.

Previews for The Niceties begin Tuesday, April 9, in the Gil Cates Theater at The Geffen Playhouse. Opening night is Wednesday, April 17, and the production will close Sunday, May 12.

At an elite East Coast university, an ambitious young black student and her esteemed white professor meet to discuss a paper the college junior is writing about the American Revolution. They're both liberal. They're both women. They're both brilliant. But very quickly, discussions of grammar and Google turn to race and reputation, and before they know it, they're in dangerous territory neither of them had foreseen - and facing stunning implications that can't be undone.

The world premiere of The Niceties was co-produced in the 2018-2019 season by the Huntington Theatre Company (Peter DuBois, Artistic Director, Michael Maso, Managing Director), Boston, MA; Manhattan Theatre Club (Lynne Meadow, Artistic Director, Barry Grove, Executive Producer), New York, NY; and McCarter Theatre Center (Emily Mann, Artistic Director/Resident, Playwright Michael S. Rosenberg, Managing Director), Princeton, NJ. Originally developed at the Contemporary American Theater Festival in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, in July 2017, under the leadership of Ed Herendeen, Producing Director, and Peggy McKowen, Associate Producing Director. Developed in part at Portland Stage Company, Anita Stewart, Executive & Artistic Director.

Tickets currently priced at $30.00 - $120.00. Available in person at The Geffen Playhouse box office, by phone at 310.208.5454 or online at www.geffenplayhouse.org. Fees may apply.

Rush tickets for each day's performance are made available to the general public 30 minutes before showtime at the box office. $35.00 General / $10.00 Student

Through a variety of events and other opportunities, The Geffen Playhouse welcomes college students to experience the live storytelling presented on our stages. We are proud of our association with UCLA's School of Theater, Film, and Television, and open our doors to all college students throughout Los Angeles. More information is available at www.geffenplayhouse.org/college.

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