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DANIEL RADCLIFFE, CHERRY JONES, and BOBBY CANNAVALE to Star in a New Broadway Play, THE LIFESPAN OF
Anyone who has never told a lie has never told a good story…
ANNOUNCEMENT OF A NEW AMERICAN PLAY
DANIEL RADCLIFFE
CHERRY JONES
BOBBY CANNAVALE
Return to Broadway to Star in the World Premiere of
THE LIFESPAN OF A FACT
A New Play by Jeremy Kareken & David Murrell
And Gordon Farrell
Based on the Essay/Book by John D’Agata & Jim Fingal
Directed by Tony Award nominee Leigh Silverman
Strictly Limited 16-Week Engagement
Begins September 20, 2018
Opening Night October 18, 2018
At Studio 54 on Broadway
(June 6, 2018 – New York, New York) -- Daniel Radcliffe, Cherry Jones and Bobby Cannavale will star in the world premiere Broadway play, THE LIFESPAN OF A FACT. Written by Jeremy Kareken & David Murrell and Gordon Farrell, the play will be directed by Tony Award nominee Leigh Silverman.
Based on the book written by John D’Agata and Jim Fingal, THE LIFESPAN OF A FACT will begin performances on Thursday, September 20, 2018. Opening night is Thursday, October 18, 2018. The production will play a limited 16-week engagement at Studio 54 on Broadway (254 West 54th Street).
Jim Fingal (Daniel Radcliffe) has a small job: to fact check articles for one of the best magazines in the country. Jim Fingal’s boss (Cherry Jones) has given him a big assignment: apply his skill to a groundbreaking piece by legendary author John D’Agata (Bobby Cannavale). And now, Jim Fingal has a huge problem: John made up some of his article. Well, a lot of his article. OK, actually, maybe the majority of it? What starts professional quickly becomes profane as one question rises to the surface: Can Jim Fingal ever just shut the fact up?
THE LIFESPAN OF A FACT is based on the stirring true story of John D’Agata’s essay, “What Happens There,” about the Las Vegas suicide of teenager Levi Presley. Jim Fingal, assigned to fact check the piece, ignited a seven-year debate on the blurred lines of what passes for truth in literary nonfiction.
The creative team includes Xxx Xxxxxxx (Scenic Design), Xxxxx Xxxxxxx (Costume Design), Xxxxxxx Xxxxxxxxxx (Lighting Design), Xxxxx Xxxxxx (Sound Design) and Xxxxx Xxxxxxxx (Projection Design).
THE LIFESPAN OF A FACT is produced on Broadway by Jeffrey Richards, Norman and Deanna Twain, Will Trice, Barbara Freitag, Eric Falkenstein, Carl Moellenberg/Wendy Federman, Ken Greiner, Van Kaplan, and Caiola Productions.
Though it is being performed at Studio 54, this production of THE LIFESPAN OF A FACT is not a Roundabout Theatre Company production.
TICKET INFORMATION:
Tickets for THE LIFESPAN OF A FACT are on sale exclusively for American Express® Card Members beginning Friday, June 8, 2018 at 10:00am EST. American Express Card Members can purchase tickets before the general public through Monday, June 18 at 9:59am EST by visiting www.telecharge.com or calling 212.239.6200.
Beginning Monday, June 18 at 10am EST, THE LIFESPAN OF A FACT tickets will be available through Audience Rewards® (www.AudienceRewards.com), The Official Rewards Program of Broadway & the Arts™. Members of the program will be able to purchase tickets and earn Audience Rewards® Bonus ShowPoints through Friday, June 22 at 9:59am EST.
Beginning Friday, June 22, tickets will be on sale to the general public at www.LifespanOfaFact.com or www.Telecharge.com (212.239.6200).
BIOS:
DANIEL RADCLIFFE (Jim) most recently starred in the survivalist film Jungle, the true-life story of Yossi Ghinsberg who was stranded alone in the Amazon jungle, as well as Beast of Burden playing a drug runner with only an hour to deliver his illegal cargo. Radcliffe recently filmed his first US TV series, TBS’s comedy “Miracle Workers.” Written by Simon Rich and adapted from his own book What in God’s Name: A Novel, the series will launch soon with seven episodes. He will also executive produce. Radcliffe is currently filming the high-octane action comedy Guns Akimbo in New Zealand and Germany. Radcliffe also starred opposite Michael Caine in Now You See Me 2, and opposite Paul Dano in A24’s indie hit Swiss Army Man, as well as in Imperium, a thriller inspired by real events about white supremacists in America. He also won rave reviews for his performance as Rosencrantz, opposite Josh McGuire’s Guildenstern, in Tom Stoppard’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead at The Old Vic, London. And in 2016 he completed a sold-out run of Privacy, a timely play at NYC’s The Public Theatre about the digital age and technology. Prior to this, Radcliffe starred opposite James McAvoy in the feature film Victor Frankenstein and in the BBC telefilm “The Gamechangers.” In 2014, he starred in the horror-thriller Horns and the romantic comedy What If and in the previous year Sony Pictures Classics’ Kill Your Darlings. On stage, he starred as Billy in The Cripple of Inishmaan, Martin McDonagh’s comic masterpiece. The play made its way to Broadway from London’s West End, where it debuted the summer of 2013. Since completing the final installment in the series of eight Harry Potter films in 2010, Radcliffe quickly proved himself a diverse talent. In 2011, he starred in a 10-month sold-out run of the Broadway musical How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. The following year, Radcliffe starred in the horror/thriller The Woman in Black. He also starred opposite Jon Hamm in two seasons of the TV mini-series “A Young Doctor’s Notebook,” a comedy drama based on a collection of short stories by celebrated Russian author Mikhail Bulgakov. Radcliffe first appeared on stage in 2007 as Alan Strang, playing opposite Richard Griffiths, in Peter Shaffer’s Equus. Directed by Thea Sharrock, the play then transferred from London’s West End to Broadway in 2008. A lifelong fan of “The Simpsons,” Radcliffe has lent his voice to the show three times. First, to the character of a brooding vampire named Edmund for the show’s “Treehouse of Horror XXI” special entitled “Tweenlight,” which aired November 2010. He then voiced the character Diggs, a new transfer student whom Bart befriends, and last appeared as himself in “No Good Deed Goes Unpunished.” Previously, Radcliffe made a guest appearance as himself in the HBO/BBC series “Extras.” He has also lent his voice to Robot Chicken and BoJack Horseman.
CHERRY JONES (Emily) most recently made her West End debut in the triumphant revival of Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie, which garnered seven Olivier Award nominations, including a nomination for Cherry for Best Actress. Cherry last appeared on Broadway also in The Glass Menagerie (Tony Award nomination) which originated at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where she is a founding member and where earlier in her career she appeared in more than 25 productions including Twelfth Night, The Three Sisters, and The Causcasian Chalk Circle. Broadway and Off-Broadway: Doubt (Tony, Drama Desk, Lucille Lortel, Outer Critics Circle and Obie Awards), Lincoln Center Theater’s production of The Heiress (Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards); Pride’s Crossing (Drama Desk Award); When We Were Young and Unafraid; The Baltimore Waltz (Obie Award); Faith Healer; Flesh and Blood; Imaginary Friends; A Moon for the Misbegotten (Tony Award nomination); Angels in America; Our Country’s Good (Tony Award nomination); and Roundabout Theatre Company’s productions of Mrs. Warren’s Profession, Major Barbara, and The Night of the Iguana. Television: President Allison Taylor in “24” (Emmy Award), “What Makes a Family,” Seasons Two and Three of “Transparent” on Amazon (Critics’ Choice Award Nomination), the mini-series “11/22/63,” Season Two of “The Handmaid’s Tale,” and Charlie Brooker’s “Black Mirror.” Film: The Horse Whisperer, Erin Brockovich, Signs, The Village, Ocean’s Twelve, and most recently Tina Fey’s Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, and Sally Potter’s black comedy The Party. Coming up, she will be in Amy Poehler’s Wine Country, Boy Erased alongside Lucas Hedges, Woody Allen’s A Rainy Day in New York, Motherless Brooklyn opposite Edward Norton, and Lucy Kirkwood’s “Foreign Skies,” based on the stage play Chimerica.
BOBBY CANNAVALE’s (John) select New York theatre credits include The Hairy Ape (Drama Desk Nomination), The Big Knife, Glengarry Glen Ross, The Motherfucker With The Hat (Tony Nomination, Drama Desk Award), Mauritius (Tony Nomination), HurlyBurly, Fucking A, and The Gingerbread House. He is a member of Labyrinth Theater Company. Cannavale’s film credits include I,Tonya, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, Ferdinand, Daddy's Home, Ant-Man, Spy, Danny Collins, Annie, Chef, Blue Jasmine, Win Win, The Station Agent, Fast Food Nation, and Romance and Cigarettes. He appears in the upcoming films The Irishman, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Boundaries, and Going Places. TV credits include: “Mr. Robot,” “Master of None,” “Vinyl,” “Boardwalk Empire” (Emmy Award, SAG Nomination), “Nurse Jackie” (2 Emmy Nominations, SAG Nomination), and “Will and Grace” (Emmy Award). Cannavale will soon appear on TV in “Homecoming” and “Angie Tribeca.”
JEREMY KAREKEN’s (Playwright) short plays Hot Rod, Big Train, and 80 Cards have been performed around the country and internationally. His awards include the Sewanee Conference’s Dakin Fellowship for Farblondjet, and Guthrie/Playwrights Center’s Two-Headed Challenge for The Sweet Sweet Motherhood. The Hamptons Film Festival Screenwriters Conference selected Kareken and David Murrell for their horror-comedy script about haunted breast implants – THESE! Conquered the Earth! In 2018, PlayPenn shortlisted Jeremy’s new political satire about an illiterate king, The Red Wool. Born and raised in Rochester, NY, and a graduate of the University of Chicago, he has taught at NYU, NYIT, The Actors Studio Drama School, and currently teaches at the Acting Studio – New York. A lifetime member of The Actors Studio, Jeremy occasionally acts and is the researcher for Bravo TV’s “Inside the Actors Studio.”
DAVID MURRELL’s (Playwright) theatrical credits include Ductwork (Access Theater, Cleveland Public Theatre), E.T.D., and [Untitled Organic Winery Project]. Screenplays: Breed Ambassador, Chomper, The Cold Spot, Girl Gets Razor, Mission: Uncomfortable, A Radio Picture, THESE! Conquered the Earth! (Hamptons Film Festival Screenwriters Conference), and Walking Kane. Murrell’s teleplays include: "Dayton Ladies,” “Down River,” and “Space Station Malibu." David was born and raised on Staten Island and graduated from the University of Chicago. The Lifespan of a Fact is his first Broadway play.
GORDON FARRELL (Playwright) received an MFA in Playwriting from the Yale School of Drama in 1986. His plays include With More Than Voices (produced off-off Broadway); Navigators, directed by Arthur Sherman at Primary Stages; Alice Again, A Tin Star Over Tombstone, and The Voice of America (Alleyway Theater). Gordon worked as a screenwriter at Universal Pictures, Warner Brothers and MGM, writing for producers as varied as Robert Simonds, Bruce Berman, and the late Norman Twain, with whom he developed several plays, including one based on the life and literary struggles of J.R.R. Tolkien, an adaptation of Richard Russo's darkly comic novel, Straight Man, and their final collaboration, The Lifespan of a Fact. Teaching in NYU's Dramatic Writing Department for over 25 years, Gordon's students include Annie Baker, Lucas Hnath, Christopher Shinn, Jessica Goldberg, Marco Rameriz, Madeleine George, and Chisa Hutchinson, among others. Gordon's book, The Power of the Playwright’s Vision, was published by Heinemann Press in 2001 and is now a standard playwriting text in the U.S., England, and Canada.
JOHN D’AGATA (Author of Original Essay/Book) is the author of Halls of Fame, About a Mountain, and The Lifespan of a Fact, as well as the editor of the 3-volume series A New History of the Essay. He is a graduate of Hobart College and the University of Iowa, where he received MFAs in poetry and nonfiction, and his writing has subsequently been supported by a Guggenheim Fellowship, a Howard Foundation Fellowship, and an NEA Literature Fellowship. He now lives in Iowa City, where he serves as the M.F. Carpenter Professor of English and the Director of The Nonfiction Writing Program.
JIM FINGAL (Author of Original Book) is a founding editor of Logic Magazine, a small print magazine devoted to deepening the discourse around technology. He holds an undergraduate English degree from Harvard, and in his years since writing The Lifespan of a Fact with John, he has tuned machine learning algorithms to make better music recommendations, hosted a podcast about video games, built a small zoo of twitter bots, and sung in a hardcore punk band. He currently lives with his wife and greyhound in San Francisco and works as the Head of Engineering for Amino, a digital health company.
LEIGH SILVERMAN (Director) has directed Violet (Roundabout; Tony nomination), Chinglish, and Well on Broadway. Recent: Soft Power by Jeanine Tseori/David Henry Hwang (Ahmanson Theater/Curan Theater); Harry Clarke (Vineyard Theatre/Minetta Lane; Lortel nomination). Upcoming: Wild Goose Dreams (Public Theatre), Hurricane Diane (NYTW). Off-Broadway: Sweet Charity (New Group), On the Exhale (Roundabout), The Outer Space (Public Theater), All The Ways to Say I Love You (MCC), The Way We Get By (Second Stage), Tumacho (Clubbed Thumb), American Hero (Williamstown Theater Festival, Second Stage), No Place to Go (Public Theater), Kung Fu (Signature Theatre), The (Curious Case of the) Watson Intelligence (Playwrights Horizons), The Madrid (MTC), Golden Child (Signature Theatre), In the Wake (CTG/Berkeley/Public Theater; Obie Award, Lortel nomination), The Call (Playwrights Horizons), Go Back to Where You Are (Playwrights Horizons, Obie Award), From Up Here (MTC, Drama Desk nom), Yellow Face (CTG/Public Theater). Encores: Really Rosie, The Wild Party, and Violet.
JEFFREY RICHARDS (Producer) is especially pleased to give Life to Lifespan, having been brought to the project by his longtime friend, the colorful impresario Norman Twain, and his wife Dee. He worked as a press representative for Norman in the 70’s and on Norman’s great film success Lean on Me. He is also delighted to be reunited with Cherry Jones and Bobby Cannavale, who he presented (respectively) in The Glass Menagerie and Glengarry Glen Ross, and with Leigh Silverman, having produced her first Broadway production Chinglish. With huge appreciation to Daniel Radcliffe, who is originating his first role on Broadway in this production. Mr. Richards graduated in the late 19th century from Wesleyan University.
NORMAN AND DEANNA TWAIN (Producer) met in 1977 when Norman cast ‘Dee,” fresh out of the Goodman School of Drama in Chicago, in his production of Vanities at the Drury Lane Theatre. Prior to Norman’s passing in August of 2016, he produced many plays on Broadway, in London, Chicago and L.A. These included Tennessee Williams’ Garden District; John Osborne’s Epitaph for George Dillon; Arnold Wesker’s Roots; Franco Zefferelli’s production of The Lady of the Camellias, the musicals Bajour and Henry, Sweet Henry; Tony Richardson’s production of Hamlet; with Nicol Williamson, Nicol Williamson’s Late Show; Cyrano de Bergerac with Stacy Keach; Charles Aznavour on Broadway; Gilbert Becaud on Broadway; John Guare’s Cop Out; The World of Lenny Bruce; Jules Feiffer’s Hold Me! (San Francisco); the Los Angeles productions of Vanities and Streamers (co-starring Richard Thomas, Bruce Davison, Charles Durning and Ralph Meeker); and the infamous Lolita, My Love by Alan Jay Lerner and John Barry. In addition to his theatre work, he produced the television movie “Superman,” based on the Charles Strouse-Lee Adams musical, Lean on Me (Winner of the NAACP Image Award for Best Picture); “Boycott” for HBO, which was nominated as Best Television Film by the American Film Institute and won a Peabody Award and the NAACP Image Award for Best Television Film; Scar, a 3D horror film; Spinning Into Butter, starring Sarah Jessica Parker; and the animated movie My Dog Tulip. Deanna acted in Chicago and off-Broadway and has been teaching American Sign Language and writing at Marymount Manhattan College since 2000. Norman and Dee’s 35-year partnership led to daughter Dena, son-in-law Tim Sims, and granddaughters Dylan and Isabelle. Dee is thrilled and very grateful that their even longer relationship with Jeffrey Richards has led to this moment of seeing The Lifespan of a Fact realized on Broadway.
WILL TRICE (Producer) has, alongside Jeffrey Richards, brought over 20 productions to Broadway and the West End. He has received Tony Awards for Porgy and Bess, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, and All the Way; as well as nominations for The Best Man, The Glass Menagerie, You Can’t Take It With You, Wolf Hall, and Fiddler on the Roof. Originally from Little Rock, AR, he spent his early career with management consulting firm McKinsey & Co., The Metropolitan Opera, and alternative asset managers D.E. Shaw & Co. He is a graduate of Southern Methodist and Northwestern Universities.
PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE:
THE LIFESPAN OF A FACT will play Monday-Saturday at 8pm, Wednesday at 2pm and Saturday at 2pm.
Beginning Thursday, October 25, 2018, the production will play Thursday at 7pm, Friday at 8pm, Saturday at 2pm and 8pm, Sunday at 2pm and 7pm, Monday at 8pm and Tuesday at 7pm.
Beginning Monday, December 17, 2018 through Wednesday, January 2, 2019, THE LIFESPAN OF A FACT will play Wednesday at 2pm and 8pm, Thursday at 7pm, Friday at 8pm, Saturday at 2pm and 8pm, Sunday at 2pm and 7pm.
Please note the following exceptions to the performance calendar:
There will be a 7pm performance on Tuesday, October 23.
There will be a 2pm and 8pm performance on Wednesday, November 21.
There will be no performance on Thursday, November 22 in observance of Thanksgiving.
There will be a 2pm performance on Thursday, December 27.
There will be no matinee performance on Wednesday, January 2, 2019.
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Twitter: @LifespanOfaFact
Instagram: @LifespanOfaFact
www.LifespanOfaFact.com
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