The season opener, to be directed by Geffen artistic director Randall Arney, officially opens Sept. 22 at the Brentwood Theatre for a run through Oct. 24.
The Geffen cast features Carlos Albert (The Women of Juarez) as Martinez, Carmen Argenziano (A Prayer for My Daughter) as Skipper, Ian Barford (The Rise and Fall of Little Voice) as Toddy Koovitz, Jeffrey Hutchinson (Cyrano De Bergerac, "The Ring II") as Mason Marzac, Bryce Johnson ("Popular," "Chasing Papi") as Jason Chenier, Jeffrey Nordling (The Taming Of The Shrew, "Once and Again") as Kippy Sunderstrom, Morocco Omari ("Joan of Arcadia") as Davey Battle, Byron Quiros (Short Eyes) as Rodriguez, Jeremy Sisto ("Six Feet Under," "Clueless") as Shane Mungitt, Terrell Tilford (The Exonerated, "Soul Food") as Darren Lemming and Ryun Yu (Kate Crackernuts) as Takeshi Kawabata.
Tom Hulce ("Amadeus," A Few Good Men) was originally slated to play Mason Marzac in the run. The actor withdrew from the play "due to personal reasons unrelated to the production," according to a Geffen release.
Take Me Out follows the story of a superstar baseball player who comes out of the closet as a gay man and the aftermath of his announcement. The play, which made its world premiere at London's Donmar Warehouse then transferred to Off Broadway's Public Theatre before its Broadway berth at the Walter Kerr — where it won Tony Awards for Best Play, Best Featured Actor for Denis O'Hare and Best Director for Joe Mantello.
The design team for Take Me Out includes Daniel Ionazzi (lighting), Christina Haatainen Jones (costume), Eric Larson (scenic) and Karl Fredrik Lundeberg (sound). Greenberg's other works include The Violet Hour; The Dazzle, Everett Beekin, Three Days of Rain, Hurrah At Last, Eastern Standard, Night and Her Stars, The American Plan, Life Under Water and The Author's Voice. He adapted Strindberg's Dance of Death for the recent Broadway staging with Ian McKellen, Helen Mirren and David Straithairn.
Director Arney has staged the Geffen productions of I Just Stopped By To See The Man, Boy Gets Girl, God's Man in Texas, and The Weir. He is an ensemble member and former artistic director of Chicago's Steppenwolf Theatre where he directed plays including The Beauty Queen of Leenane, Death and the Maiden, Curse of the Starving Class, and the world premiere of Picasso at the Lapin Agile.
The rest of the 2004-2005 Geffen season includes David Rambo new adaptation of Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe's Paint Your Wagon (Nov. 23, 2004-Jan. 9, 2005), another play to be announced shortly (Feb. 1-March 13, 2005), George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart's You Can't Take It With You (April 12-May 22, 2005) and Doug Wright's I Am My Own Wife with Broadway star Jefferson Mays under the direction of Broadway director Moisés Kaufman (June 14-July 24, 2005).
Tickets for Take Me Out at the Brentwood Theatre, 11301 Wilshire Boulevard in Brentwood, CA, are available by phone at (310) 208-6500 or online at www.geffenplayhouse.com.
