Theatre News Wire

Goodman Theatre Artistic Director Robert Falls announces his cast for Red, John Logan's two-person Tony Award-winning Broadway sensation that launches the Goodman's 2011/2012 season (September 17 - October 23, 2011). Washington, D.C.-based actor Edward Gero assumes the role of abstract expressionist painter Mark Rothko and Chicagoan Patrick Andrews portrays Ken, Rothko's young new assistant.

"I'm thrilled to welcome back Ed Gero to the Goodman for John Logan's brilliant work, Red. In my recent production of King Lear, Ed was a brilliant Gloucester, and is counted among Washington, D.C.'s most prolific theater artists," said Atistic Director Robert Falls. "I'm excited to work for the first time with Patrick Andrews, a rising star who has distinguished himself in major roles throughout Chicago following his memorable turn in The Actor-a highlight of our 2008 Horton Foote Festival."

Full-blooded and visceral, the Tony Award-winning Red is a journey into the mind of abstract expressionist Mark Rothko, for whom paintings are "pulsating" life forces and art is intended to stop the heart. Red chronicles the tormented painter's two year struggle to complete a lucrative set of murals for Manhattan's exclusive Four Seasons restaurant, and his fraught relationship with a seemingly naïve young assistant-who must choose between appeasing his mentor and changing the course of art history. Set amid the swiftly-changing cultural tide of the early 1960s, Red is a startling snapshot of a brilliant artist at the height of his fame, a play hailed as "smart and scintillating" (The New Yorker) and "intense and exciting" (The New York Times).

"To say that I am excited by the challenge of wrestling with this fiercely intelligent play and deeply complex character of Mark Rothko would be an understatement," said Edward Gero. "To have the opportunity to do so at two of America's greatest theaters-the Goodman and Arena Stage-defies description. I can't wait to roll up my sleeves and dig in."

Added Patrick Andrews, "I feel privileged to be trusted with this intimate and pointed play. Chicago has given me incredible opportunities to grow as an artist, and my first time on the Goodman stage was a major building block on that journey. This role, and the chance to work with Bob and Ed for the first time, is filled with exciting potential, nerves and personal growth."

Tickets for Red ($25 - $89) go on sale August 5. Season subscriptions (starting at $100 for five plays) and tickets for groups of 10 or more (savings of up to 50%) are available now. Call 312.443.3800 or visit GoodmanTheatre.org. ComEd is the Official Lighting Sponsor and Katten Muchin Rosenman is a Major Corporate Sponsor. Following the Chicago engagement, Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater will remount the Goodman's production of Red in Washington, D.C., January 20 - March 4, 2012, in the Kreeger Theater. Visit ArenaStage.org for details.