Odds & Ends: Donna McKechnie Enlisted for The Wild Party, Richard Thomas to Headline Final Rabbit & More

Here's a quick roundup of stories you may have missed today.

Donna McKechnie & More Enlisted for The Wild Party
Manhattan decadence and 1920's excess beckons for Tony winner Donna McKechnie (A Chorus Line) and Broadway alum John Owen-Jones (Les Miz). The pair will appear as Burrs and Dolores, respectively, in Michael John LaChiusa’s The Wild Party, starring Tony winner Frances Ruffelle. The previously announced production is set to play a limited engagement February 13, 2017 through April 1 at The Other Palace, officially opening on February 20. The cast will also include Simon Thomas as Black, Dex Lee as Jackie, Victoria Hamilton-Barritt as Kate, Ako Mitchell as Eddie, Gloria Obianyo and Genesis Lynea as The D’armano Bros, Melanie Bright as Sally, Lizzy Connolly as Mae, Steven Serlin as Goldberg, Sebastian Torkia as Gold, Bronté Barbé as Nadine and Tiffany Graves as Madelaine.

Richard Thomas to Headline Final Rabbit
Emmy winner Richard Thomas (The Waltons, You Can’t Take It With You) will take the leap in White Rabbit Red Rabbit on December 19. This is scheduled to be the last off-Broadway performance of Nassim Soleimanpour’s solo show, which involves a different actor every performance seeing the script for the first time just before they go on stage. The New York premiere is playing Monday nights at the Westside Theatre.

Saoirse Ronan to Team Up With Josie Rourke
Saoirse Ronan, who made her Broadway debut this spring in The Crucible, will play Mary, Queen of Scots in a film to be shot next year. The Donmar Warehouse’s artistic director, Josie Rourke, who is currently represented on the Main Stem by Les Liaisons Dangereuses, is set to helm the movie. According to the Daily Mail, there’s no word yet on who’ll be joining the Oscar nominee on screen in the Working Title project—we will keep you posted!

Cast Set for Stephen Karam’s Speech and Debate
Douglas Booth and Tony Revolori will star in the U.K. premiere of Stephen Karam’s Speech and Debate. The Tony winner’s play, which grapples with serious modern social issues—homophobia, teenage alienation and the limits of online privacy, will run February 22, 2017 through April 1 and officially open on February 24. Tom Attenborough directs.

Robert De Niro on Figuring Out A Bronx Tale
Robert De Niro co-directed the buzzy new Broadway tuner A Bronx Tale and he stopped by The Tonight Show on December 8 to discuss the streetwise show and more. "I always felt it would be a wonderful musical," said the legendary director. "Finally we figured it out." Check out the video below (and hope that if you do visit the Longacre Theatre, you won't be sitting near Jimmy Fallon's mom).