Of Mice and Men: full cast announced

The full cast has been announced for the upcoming Broadway revival of John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men, directed by Tony Award winner Anna D. Shapiro, opening at the Longacre Theatre on 16 Apr 2014, following previews from 19 Mar 2014, where it will play a strictly limited engagement through to 27 Jul 2014.

Completing the cast are Ron Cephas Jones as 'Crooks,' Alex Morf as 'Curley,' Joel Marsh Garland as 'Carlson', James McMenamin as 'Whit' and Jim Ortlieb as 'The Boss.'

They join the previously announced Academy Award nominee James Franco as 'George,' BAFTA Award nominee Chris O'Dowd as 'Lennie', Tony Award-winner Jim Norton as 'Candy,' "Gossip Girl" star Leighton Meester as 'Curly Wife' and "True Blood" star Jim Parrack as 'Slim.' With the exception of Jim Norton, all of the above are making their Broadway debut.

John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men is set against the backdrop of America's Great Depression and tells the story of the friendship between George (James Franco) and Lennie (Chris O'Dowd) who dream of buying a small farm of their own after years of ekeing out a living as itinerant farm workers. The two friends soon discover the flip side of their American Dream and the friendship is tested to its limits.

The revival of Of Mice and Men is being produced on Broadway by David Binder, with Kate Lear, Darren Bagert, Adam Zotovich, Barbara Whitman and Latitude Link. 101 Productions, Ltd are the executive producers.

Of Mice and Men premiered on Broadway in 1937, in a production directed by George S. Kaufman, and which starred Wallace Ford as 'George' and Broderick Crawford as 'Lennie.'

It was revived on Broadway in 1974, starring Kevin Conway as 'George' and 'James Earl Jones' as 'Lennie,' with directon by Edwin Sherin.

Bios:

James Franco's (George) is making his Broadway debut. His many film credits include playing "Aron Ralston" in "127 Hours" for which he was nominated for both an Oscar and BAFTA Awards, "Harry Osbourne/Green Goblin" in the Spider-Man movies, "Allen Ginsberg" in "Howl" and "Scott Smith" in "Milk." His TV credits include playing "Osbourne Silver" in "Hollywood Heights," "Franco" in "General Hospital" and "Daniel Desario" in "Freaks and Geeks."

Joel Marsh Garland (Carlson) is making his Broadway debut. He has appeared Off-Broadway in 'Checkers' and 'Essential Self-Defence.' His TV credits include "Orange Is the New Black," "Bored to Death" and "Kings."

Ron Cephas Jones (Crooks) has appeared on Broadway in 'The Motherfucker with the Hat' and 'Gem of the Ocean.' His many Off-Broadway credits include 'Two Trains Running' and 'Our Lady of 121st Street,' for which he was nominated for Lucille Lortel Awards.

James McMenamin (Whit) made his Broadway debut in 'Butley.' His Off-Broadway credits are 'Ashville,' 'The Bad Guys,' 'Middletown,' 'Our Town' and 'BFE.'

Leighton Meester (Curley's Wife) is making her Broadway debut. She starred as "Blair Waldorf" on the TV show "Gossip Girl." Her other TV credits include "24," "Entourage" and "House." Meester starred opposite Gwyneth Paltrow and Tim McGRaw in the feature film "Country Strong."

Alex Morf (Curley) is a newcomer who is making his Broadway debut.

Jim Norton (Candy) recently starred Off-Broadway in Conor McPherson's 'The Night Alive.' He won a 2007 Olivier Award and a 2008 Tony Award for his portrayal of 'Richard Harkin' in Conor McPherson's 'The Seafarer.' His other Broadway credits include 'The Mystery of Edwin Drood,' 'Finian's Rainbow' and 'The Weir.'

Chris O'Dowd's (Lennie) is making his Broadway debut. His TV credits include starring as "Roy Trenneman" in "The IT Crowd," "Dr. Cockroach" in "Monsters vs. Aliens," "Tom Chadwick" in "Family Tree" and "Thomas-John" in "Girls." Film credits include "Thor: The Dark World," "The Double," "The Sapphires," "3, 2, 1... Frankie Go Boom," "Friends with Kids" and "Bridesmaids."

Jim Ortlieb (The Boss) has previusly appeared on Broadway in 'Guys and Dolls' and 'The Farnsworth Invention.' He regularly makes guest appearances on popular TV programmes, with his notable TV credits being "Felicity" and "Roswell High."

Jim Parrack (Slim) is making hs Broadway debut, he is known to fans of the TV series "True Blood" for his role as "Hoyt Fortenberry." He is the president of 120 Productions, Inc, and has previously worked with James Franco when he directed him on the movie "As I Lay Dying."

Anna D. Shapiro (Director) returns to Broadway following her productions of 'August: Osage County' (Tony Award winner for Best Direction) and 'The Motherfucker with the Hat' (Tony Award nomination for Best Direction). Her production of Bruce Norris' 'Domesticated' is currently playing at Lincoln Center Theatre.