On Monday, October 24 Metropolitan Playhouse will hold a free public reading of the new stage adaptation of IT CAN'T HAPPEN HERE, based on the 1935 novel written by Sinclair Lewis. In 1936, the novel was adapted into a play and theaters across the country opened productions on the same night. To commemorate the 80th anniversary of those productions, regional theaters, universities, and communities across the country will read the new adaptation by Berkeley Repertory Theatre's Artistic Director Tony Taccone and screenwriter Bennett S. Cohen.
Imagine America ruled by a charismatic bigot elected president on a populist platform. That is what Nobel Prize winner Sinclair Lewis did in his long forgotten play IT CAN'T HAPPEN HERE, which uncannily reflects the current the state of American politics. The Peccadillo Theater Company will present a staged reading of IT CAN'T HAPPEN HERE, last seen on the New York Stage in 1936, for one night only on Monday, March 21st at 7:30 pm at the National Arts Club (15 Gramercy Park South).