Can a jealous actor fool his cheating wife? Lillian Groag (artistic associate at the Old Globe) directs a new adaptation of The Guardsman, the comic tour de force about love, fidelity and illusion by Hungarian playwright Ferenc Molnár, opening tomorrow, May 17 at the NoHo Arts Center. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast onstage below!
Starring Henry Olek (actor: Idiot's Delight, Twentieth Century at the Lillian; screenwriter: All of Me starring Steve Martin and Lily Tomlin, Serving Up Richard called "tasty" by the New York Times), Susan Priver (Backstage West awards for David Mamet's Reunion and Sidney Kingsley'sDetective Story), David Fruechting (The Good Book of Pedantry and Wonder at Boston Court, The Flu Season at Circle X), Kaitln Huwe(member, Illyrian Players Theater Company), and Bonnie Snyder (The Seagull, Macbeth at Antaeus; By the Bog at Theatre Banshee), The Guardsman is Molnár's 1910 masterpiece that inspired Harold Pinter's The Lover. The premise: thespian Max Schuman (Olek) is certain that his wife, actress Elena Beck (Priver), is being unfaithful, and disguises himself as a Russian guardsman to test her devotion. In this new rendition by H. Patrikas Zakshevskis, Molnár's classic has been freely adapted to be played by older actors. These are not the young twenty-somethings of the original - fresh newlyweds in the ascendance of their lives and relationship. This couple is in the autumn of their lives with a personal history between them that goes back much farther. They KNOW each other. A real-life couple who have performed opposite each other many times for over a decade, including in the award-winning production of Pinter's The Lover and his A Slight Ache, Olek and Priver bring an important authenticity to their roles.Photo Credit: Ed Krieger
David Fruechting and Susan Priver
David Fruechting and Henry Olek
Henry Olek and Susan Priver
Henry Olek and Susan Priver
Kaitlin Huwe, Henry Olek, Susan Priver, Bonnie Snyder, David Fruechting
Henry Olek and Susan Priver
Susan Priver and Henry Olek
Susan Priver and Henry Olek
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