Randy Harrison is spending his summer on 59th Street

With opening night at Primary Stages on 59th Street just a week away, awareness of the NYC premiere of the new play Harbor has crept into the Berkshires. I have heard from many Randy Harrison fans who bemoan his absence for the second season in a row at he Berkshire Theatre Group (BTG). After half a dozen years of regular visits, things seem to have gone cold between him and his summer theatre appearances in these parts.
Kate Maguire, the artistic director of the BTG said in a recent interview that there weren’t any roles for him this season, though I thought his taking on the character of Raul, the intruder and would-be rapist in Extremities, might be a real test of Harrison being able to play against type. He has played unusual roles in the past with great discipline. What if a rapist had eyes so blue you could drown in them and was an actor whose appearance makes fans go wobbly in the ankles? Harrison is known to work hard at transformations, in Waiting for Godot his famous “Lucky speech” almost gave me a heart attack it was so brazen and in-your-face. Tough roles are when an actor has to really work hard, and if an unpopular one, (he played a Nazi once) he must be prepared for the wrath of his fans. But this never happened, Karen Allen found her perfect Raul for Extremities (James McMenamin), and it is getting rave reviews, so the point is moot.

With both summer and rehearsals well underway, the pressure is on for Harrison and his colleagues to polish this production until it shines as brightly as the summer sun overhead. (We have no idea if the rehearsal room is air conditioned or not – the company may be toughing out some pretty hot temperatures with the current heat wave.)
Harrison has just completed the film Such Good People, now in post-production, and is in what have to be very intense final rehearsals for Harbor. [..] The QWAN company which he helped establish will be doing a QWAN-vention with Randy Harrison, Jenn Harris, Matt Wilkas, Philip Taratula, Christian Coulson, and Jack Ferver. It is the QWAN Company’s one day theatre convention with Q&As, Panels, and small group chatting time. Then to top it off there will be a live perforamnce of their two well known parodies SWAN!! and Notes!!

With the opening of Randy Harrison’s new play imminent, here is a rundown of everything that is known about Harbor except perhaps how the critics will react.
Nevertheless, it will likely have little trouble finding its audience.

Primary Stages launches their 29th season with the New York premiere of Harbor by Tony-nominated writer Chad Beguelin (Elf, The Wedding Singer). Directed by Tony-nominated director Mark Lamos (Seascape, The Rivals, The Deep Blue Sea), the production features Erin Cummings (Starz’s “Spartacus: Blood and Sand”, CBS’ “Made In Jersey”), Randy Harrison (Showtime’s “Queer As Folk”, Broadway’s Wicked), Alexis Molnar (world premiere of Harbor at Westport Playhouse), and Paul Anthony Stewart (Broadway’s Fiddler on the Roof, The People in the Picture). Harbor runs July 23 – September 8 at Primary Stages at 59E59 Theaters. Opening night is August 6.
When fifteen-year-old Lottie and her ne’er-do-well mother Donna drop in unannounced on the beautiful Sag Harbor home of Donna’s brother and his new husband, all hell breaks loose. The bonds between kith and kin are tested in this alternately biting and touching comedy about the constantly shifting nature of the meaning of family. Harbor is from playwright Chad Beguelin, the author/lyricist of Broadway’s The Wedding Singer and the lyricist for Elf; and Mark Lamos, the director of Primary Stages hits Black Tie, Indian Blood and Buffalo Gal.
Harbor features a scenic design by Andrew Jackness, costume design by Candice Donnelly, lighting design by Japhy Weideman, and original music and sound design by John Gromada.

Randy Harrison (Kevin) is best known for his portrayal of “Justin Taylor” on the Showtime series “Queer as Folk” and has spent much of his career on stage. Broadway: Wicked. Off-Broadway: Silence: The Musical, The Singing Forest (Public Theatre/NYSF), Antony and Cleopatra (Theatre for a New Audience), Edward II (Red Bull Theatre) and A Letter from Ethel Kennedy (MCC). Regional credits include Red (George Street Playhouse/Cleveland Playhouse), the American premiere of Alan Bennet’s The Habit of Art (Studio Theatre, DC), The Glass Menagerie (Guthrie Theatre), and numerous seasons at the Berkshire Theatre Festival. NY: QWAN Company’s Notes! and Swan!!! (PS122, Abrons Arts Center, Theatre 80) and Our Hit Parade @ Joe’s Pub.