Paul Rudd, Michael Shannon Bring ‘Grace’ to Broadway’s Cort Theatre October 4

Paul Rudd and Michael Shannon will appear on Broadway together later this year in “Grace.”

“Grace” will begin previews at the Cort Theatre on Broadway on September 13 with an official opening on October 4. The play is written by Oscar-winning director Craig Wright, known for his work on HBO’s “Six Feet Under,” and also stars Ed Asner and Kate Arrington.

The cast got together at a press conference at the Grace Hotel pool in Manhattan to discuss the play and their roles. According to the Village Voice, Ed Asner said the play “is about large, important issues like questioning faith and the universe, but it’s fun and accessible too.”

The paper reported that Paul Rudd said he liked playing a darker character in the play that isn’t dependent on jokes. He added that he would like to play similar roles in films, “but nobody’s making that call.”

Ed Anser explained that he wanted to do the play because, “I wanted to work with young people. They make me young.” He then added with a smile that, “I didn’t know that they would be three retarded young people.”

Here’s how the show’s official website describes the play:

In alternating scenes of hilarity and poignancy, life turns surreal for an eclectic foursome whose destinies collide in the Sunshine State. A wide-eyed young couple (Rudd & Arrington) head south with big plans to open a chain of Gospel-themed motels. When an agitated rocket scientist (Shannon) and a prickly pest-control man (Asner) enter the picture, the couple’s ordered world is thrown into chaos.

“Grace” first premiered at the Woolly Mammoth Theatre in Washington, D.C. back in 2004, and has since been performed in Chicago and Los Angeles. Dexter Bullard will direct the play. The production marks the Broadway debuts for Shannon, Wright and Bullard.