The Public Theater has announced that Richard Nelson’s three-play cycle chronicling the U.S. election, The Gabriels, will play in Washington D.C.; Australia; and Hong Kong beginning in January 2017. The world premiere of the third and final installment, Women of a Certain Age, opened at the Public Theater on Election Day, November 8, and is scheduled to play through December 4.
The tour kicks off in Washington, D.C., where it will play The Kennedy Center January 3-22. It will then travel to The Perth International Arts Festival in Australia for an engagement February 11-18, and will conclude at the Hong Kong Arts Festival for performances February 22- 26.
The three works—Hungry, What Did You Expect?, and Women of a Certain Age—written and directed by Nelson, track the lives of a family throughout the current presidential election year. All three plays are set to run in repertory at the Public’s LuEsther Theater for marathon performances December 10, 11, 14, 17, and 18.
“The Gabriels has been one of the great achievements of the American Theater in the new millennium,” said artistic director Oskar Eustis in a press statement. “I am delighted that we can give the world a glimpse of Americans who are radically different from the image of America in the international media. No arrogance, no bombast, no invectives; just real, compassionate, confused people struggling with the world we live in.”
The complete Off-Broadway cast, who will also tour with the production, is made up of Meg Gibson (Karin Gabriel), Lynn Hawley (Hannah Gabriel), Roberta Maxwell (Patricia Gabriel), Maryann Plunkett (Mary Gabriel), Jay O. Sanders (George Gabriel), and Amy Warren (Joyce Gabriel).
Tony Award-winning playwright and director Nelson returns to the Public following his 2013 play cycle The Apple Family Plays, which were original premieres tethered to specific moments in American politics; Nelson would update the script to reflect recent developments. In the same spirit, The Gabriels cycle features a core acting company and unfolds in real time over a couple of hours. Hungry began performances in February, and the second play, What Did You Expect?, debuted in September.
All three plays in The Gabriels feature scenic design by Susan Hilferty and Jason Ardizzone-West; costume design by Susan Hilferty; lighting design by Jennifer Tipton; and sound design by Scott Lehrer and Will Pickens.
Tickets for the finale and marathon performances are available by calling (212) 967-7555 or visiting PublicTheater.org. The Public Theater is located at 425 Lafayette St., Astor Place.
