Penguin Rep Theatre, under the leadership of Joe Brancato, founding Artistic Director, and Andrew M. Horn, Executive Director, presents the world premiere of The Steel Man, a new play by Cary Gitter, directed by Mr. Brancato, beginning Friday, September 6, in Stony Point, New York.
The Steel Man closes the nonprofit professional theatre’s 46th season and will be produced through September 29.
Set in 1980s Pittsburgh, The Steel Man tells the story of Jake Gellert, an aspiring actor who struggles to escape from the shadow of his larger-than-life father, Leo, a Hungarian Jewish immigrant. Inspired by a true story, the play is a powerful drama about a father and son haunted by the past but hopeful for a more promising future.
Cary Gitter is the playwright-in-residence at Penguin Rep Theatre, where his plays Gene & Gilda and The Virtuous Life of Joseph Andrews were previously presented. The musical The Sabbath Girl, adapted from his play, and featuring a book by Gitter, music by Neil Berg, and lyrics by Berg and Gitter, opened Penguin’s 2024 season in May before transferring to a triumphant Off Broadway run.
Gitter is a three-time O’Neill semifinalist, a two-time Jewish Plays Project finalist, and an alumnus of the Obie Award-winning EST/Youngblood playwrights’ group. His play How My Grandparents Fell in Love was a New York Times Critic’s Pick as part of the Ensemble Studio Theatre’s 36th Marathon of One-Act Plays and aired on the acclaimed podcast Playing on Air.
The cast, under Mr. Brancato’s direction, includes Sam Guncler as Leo Gellert (Broadway: The Gathering with Hal Linden. Off Broadway: Bug, My Name is Asher Lev. Penguin: The Goldman Project, Around the World in 80 Days, A Strange and Separate People, Half and Half); Amanda Kristin Nichols as Christine Sommers (Penguin: Let There Be Love. TV: Mr. + Mr. Smith, New Amsterdam, The Sinner); and Leighton Samuels as Jake Gellert (Film/TV: Mindhunters, FBI. Theatre: Aslo Repertory Theatre, FORGE Theatre Company, Lost Nation Theater).
Director Brancato’s credits include The Sabbath Girl at Penguin and Off Broadway; Michael McKeever’s Daniel’s Husband, which transferred from Penguin to Primary Stages at the Cherry Lane Theatre and then onto its commercial production at the Westside Theatre/Upstairs, as well as the same playwright’s After, which moved from Penguin to 59E59 Theaters; Erasmus Fenn’s Drop Dead Perfect at Theatre at St. Clements (NY Times Critic’s Pick); The Devil’s Music: The Life & Blues of Bessie Smith (Drama Desk, Lucille Lortel, Off B’way Alliance, and Audelco Award nominee); Freed (Audelco Award nominee); Tryst (Outer Critics nomination for Best Play) at the Promenade and at Irish Rep; and Cobb (Drama Desk winner).
The Steel Man is designed by Christopher and Justin Swader (set), Christian Fleming (costumes), Ed McCarthy (lights), Max Silverman (original music and sound), Brian Pacelli (projections), and Dana Weintraub (props). Michael Palmer is production stage manager.
Performances take place at Penguin’s home facility, a repurposed hay barn in historic Stony Point (Rockland County), New York. “The converted barn, circa 1880, has never been more inviting” (The New York Times). Says Mr. Horn, “It’s theatre so close you can feel it, with comfortable upholstered seats and no seat more than 30 feet from the stage.” The theatre is air-conditioned and handicapped accessible, features assistive hearing devices, and has plenty of free parking.
Performances are scheduled: Thursday evenings at 7:00 p.m. (September 12, September 19, September 26); Friday matinees at 2:00 p.m. (September 6, September 13); Friday evenings at 7:00 p.m. (September 20, September 27); Saturdays at 3:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. (September 7, September 14, September 21, September 28); and Sunday matinees at 2:00 p.m. (September 8, September 15, September 22, September 29).
There will be a reception following the opening on Sunday, September 8; a tasting catered by Big Daddy’s Home Plate BBQ of Haverstraw before the early show on Saturday, September 14; and a discussion following the performance on Friday, September 20.
Tickets to The Steel Man are priced at $49. Early ordering discount tickets are $42 if purchased by August 31.
The production is made possible with funds from Arts Alive, a regrant program of ArtsWestchester with support from the Office of the Governor, the New York State Legislature, and the New York State Council on the Arts.
To order tickets or for further information, visit Penguin Rep’s website at www.penguinrep.org or call 845-786-2873.
