James Lecesne's The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey Extends Off-Broadway

The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey, written and performed by James Lecesne, will extend off-Broadway through October 18; it had previously been set to shutter at the Westside Theatre on October 4. Directed by Tony Speciale, the play officially opened on on July 23.

Spring Awakening composer Duncan Sheik has provided original music for the piece, which is inspired by Lecesne’s novel Absolute Brightness. The play previously ran at the Lower East Side’s Dixon Place.

Lecesne wrote the screenplay for the Oscar-winning short Trevor. The film inspired the creation of The Trevor Project, co-founded by Lecesne. His previous solo shows include Word of Mouth and One Man Band; he has also appeared on stage in The Best Man on Broadway and Cloud 9, Boys in the Band and Motherhood Out Loud off-Broadway.

In The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pekley, Lecesne takes on every character in a small Jersey shore town, where Leonard, an optimistic and flamboyant 14-year-old, goes missing. He becomes an unexpected inspiration as the town’s citizens question how they live.