Odds & Ends: Casting Set for Billy Porter-Directed Play The Purists at Huntington & More

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

Casting Set for Billy Porter-Directed Play The Purists at Huntington
Huntington Theatre Company has announced full casting for The Purists, Dan McCabe's world premiere play slated to appear at the celebrated Boston theater this summer. Tony winner and newly minted Emmy nominee Billy Porter will direct the previously announced production, set to begin previews on August 30 and open on September 11. The cast will include J. Bernard Calloway (All the Way), Morocco Omari (Empire), John Scurti (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), Izzie Steele (Cloud Nine) and Analisa Velez (Tell Hector I Miss Him). The Purists follows a former rapper, a DJ and a showtune-loving telesales director who have become an unlikely group, hanging out and sparring about music on a stoop in Queens. When an impromptu rap battle erupts between two younger female emcees, everything gets questioned. The production is scheduled to play a limited engagement through September 29.

Jeff Daniels Signs On for Showtime Series Rust
Jeff Daniels, the Tony-nominated star currently appearing on Broadway in To Kill a Mockingbird, has come aboard as star and exec producer of Rust, a new series slated to debut on Showtime, according to Variety. Based on Philipp Meyer's novel American Rust, the series is described as "a family drama that will explore the tattered American dream through the eyes of complicated and compromised chief of police Del Harris (Daniels) in a Rust Belt town in southwest Pennsylvania. When the woman he truly loves sees her son accused of murder, Harris is forced to decide what he’s willing to do to protect him." Oscar-nominated Broadway alum Dan Futterman will co-exec produce and write multiple episodes of the series.

Rattlestick Announces Full Casting for Kathleen Chalfant-Led World Premiere
Casting is complete for Novenas for a Lost Hospital, a new play by Cusi Cram making its world premiere at off-Broadway's Rattlestick Playwrights Theater this fall. Tony nominee Kathleen Chalfant (Angels in America, Wit) will headline the previously announced production, directed by Artistic Director Daniella Topol, slated to begin previews on September 5 and open on September 19. Joining Chalfant in the cast will be Ken Barnett, Goussy Celestin, Justin Genna, Steven Jeltsch, Alvin Keith, Shayne Lebron-Acevedo, Kelly McAndrew, Noriko Omichi, Rafael Sánchez, Laura Vogels and Natalie Woolams-Torres. The play theatrically explores the 161-year history of St. Vincent's Hospital, guided by Elizabeth Seton of the Sisters of Charity (played by Chalfant). The production will play a limited off-Broadway run through October 13.

Check Out Andy Mientus & the Cast of London's The View UpStairs in New Trailer
An exciting video trailer has been released from the current London debut staging of Max Vernon's celebrated off-Broadway tuner The View UpStairs. Broadway's Andy Mientus headlines the musical, which looks back on the UpStairs Lounge, a vibrant '70s gay bar in the French Quarter of New Orleans. Watch Mientus and his co-stars below, and make your way across the pond the see The View UpStairs for yourself at the Soho Theatre through August 24.