Acclaimed American playwright Keith Bunin gets his UK debut this week when his play The Busy World is Hushed receives its European premiere at the Finborough Theatre. Directed by Theatre503 founder Paul Higgins, the premiere production runs for eight weeks from this Thursday 6 October until 25 November 2017.
“If you take God away, the world is no less horrible”
Hannah, a widowed minister and Bible scholar, finds her faith at odds with that of her long-estranged gay son, Thomas. She has recently hired an inquisitive young writer, Brandt, to assist with her book about a newly discovered manuscript that appears to be a lost gospel, one that may predate those in the Bible itself. As she notices the chemistry brewing between Brandt and her son, she decides to risk all on an unconventional opportunity for reconciliation that has unexpected consequences for all three of them.
Originally premiered in 2006 at New York City’s Playwrights Horizons where it starred screen star Jill Clayburgh and was nominated for the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Play, The Busy World is Hushed examines – with wisdom, humour and insight – the contradictions we find in our faith, our families and ourselves…
Founding Artistic Director of Theatre503, and 2017 OffWestEnd Award winner, Paul Higgins returns to direct at the Finborough Theatre, where Kazia Pelka, Mateo Oxley and Michael James star. Higgins’ previous Finborough credits include Dog Well Done and Wendell Ash Was Here.
The London premiere is designed by Marco Turcich, with lighting by Matt Cater. It’s presented by Arsalan Sattari Productions in association with Neil McPherson for the Finborough.
Playwright Keith Bunin’s other plays include The Credeaux Canvas and The World Over(Playwrights Horizons), 10 Million Miles (Atlantic Theatre Company),Sam Bendrix at the Bon Soir(La Jolla Playhouse and City Theatre),Vera Laughed (New York Stage and Film),The Principality of Sorrows (Pure Orange Productions), The King of Clocks, (Lincoln Center Lab) and A Joke(Malaparte). Television includes In Treatment (HBO). Film includes Horns, starring Daniel Radcliffe. His essays have been published in American Film Magazine and on the web at McSweeney’s. He received his B.A. from Goddard College and his M.A. from Columbia University.
