The Temperamentals to play at New World Stages

Jon Marans's drama, The Temperamentals is to have another Off-Broadway outing, and will now open at New World Stages on 28 Feb 2010, following previews from 18 Feb.

The play began as a showcase at the end of April 2009 in an intimate studio theatre. All performances were sold out in advance with a waiting list for the initial engagement. Due to the critical and popular acclaim, it moved to the Barrow Group Theatre, where it extended its run on two occasions , playing through to 23 Aug 2009.

The The Temperamentals tells the story of two men - the communist Harry Hay and the Viennese refugee and designer Rudi Gernreich - as they fall in love while building the first gay rights organization in the United States pre-Stonewall. The play weaves together the personal and political to tell a relatively unknown chapter in gay history.

The play is an intimate portrayal of the men who created history and the epic struggles they overcame. The characters consist of the actual men who founded the Mattachine Society (Harry Hay, Rudi Gernreich, Chuck Rowland, Bob Hull, and Dale Jennings), as well as other prominent figures of the time in Hollywood and the film industry as well as the world of fashion.

Directed by Jonathan Silversteinl, the original cast included Thomas Jay Ryan as 'Harry Hay' and Michael Urie (TV's 'Ugly Betty') as 'Rudi Gernreich,' who led the cast of five actors. It is expected that Ryan and Hay will again feature in the show - though casting for the new production is still to be confirmed.

The play is being produced by Daryl Roth and Stacy Shane.

Jon Marans' (playwright) 'Old Wicked Songs' was a 1996 Pulitzer Prize Finalist for Drama, winner of New York Drama League, L.A. Drama Logue Award, and included in Otis Guernsey's Best Plays of 1996-97. It has been produced in over a dozen countries including in London's West End with Bob Hoskins and James Callis.

Director Jonathan Silverstein's recent credits are the Off-Broadway revivals of 'The Dining Room' (Drama Desk nomination; Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Ensemble) and 'Tea and Sympathy,' both for the Keen Company, where he serves as Resident Director.