Jason Alexander will return to Broadway this summer — this time as a director. The Tony Award-winning actor best known for his turn as George on television’s “Seinfeld” will come back to his theater roots at the helm of the new comedy “The Cottage.”
The play will begin performances on July 7 ahead of an official opening night on July 24 at the Helen Hayes Theatre. The production is scheduled to run for a limited engagement through Oct. 29. Though the Hayes is owned and operated by Second Stage Theater Company, “The Cottage” is a commercial production not part of the nonprofit’s season.
Written by Sandy Rustin (who will make her Broadway debut with the work), the farce begins when a character named Sylvia exposes an affair to her husband and her lover’s wife. Inspired by the style of Noël Coward, the play will star Emmy Award winner Eric McCormack as Beau, Tony nominee Laura Bell Bundy as Sylvia and Tony nominee Lilli Cooper as Marjorie.
McCormack, who won an Emmy for his turn as Will on the series “Will & Grace,” last appeared on Broadway in “Gore Vidal’s The Best Man.” His other Main Stem credits include “The Play What I Wrote” and the 2000 revival of “The Music Man.” Bundy last starred on Broadway as Elle Woods in “Legally Blonde: The Musical,” a performance that earned her a Tony nomination. Her other credits include “Wicked” and “Hairspray.” Cooper most recently took the Broadway stage as part of another farce, “POTUS.” She also originated roles in “Tootsie,” for which she garnered a Tony nod, “SpongeBob SquarePants” and “Spring Awakening.” Casting for “The Cottage” is by Laura Stanczyk.
Alexander, who earned a 1989 Tony Award for his turn in “Jerome Robbins’ Broadway,” last appeared on Broadway in 2015 as part of the company of “Fish in the Dark” (written by “Seinfeld” co-creator Larry David). Alexander’s additional Main Stem performance credits include “Accomplice,” “Broadway Bound,” “The Rink” and “Merrily We Roll Along.” “The Cottage” will mark his Broadway directorial debut.
Additional cast and creatives for “The Cottage” will be announced.
“The Cottage” is being produced by Victoria Lang, Ryan Bogner, Tracey McFarland of Broadway & Beyond Theatricals; Carl White and Gregory Rae of Martian Entertainment; and Eric Cornell and Jack Sennott of Cornice Productions. Broadway & Beyond Theatricals will executive produce and Martian Entertainment will serve as general manager.
