Hare and Daldry's Acclaimed Berlin/Wall to Play Public Theater

The Public Theater will present David Hare’s Berlin/Wall for a limited run of four days, beginning May 14 and running through 17. The one-man show of contrasting monologues, starring Hare, is directed by Academy Award nominee and Billy Elliot helmer Stephen Daldry.

In Berlin/Wall, Hare visits the place where the infamous wall has come down, presenting a meditation about Germany’s restored capitol and what it represents in European history as well as his own life. The actor then “travels” to Israel, where the Israeli/Palestine security fence will one day stretch the 489 mile border of the country. Four times as long as its Berlin counterpart, the wall inspires Hare to explore the philosophy of its building and personal accounts of those who live on either side. Berlin premiered at London’s National Theatre in February 2009, followed shortly thereafter by Wall, which debuted at The Royal Court Theatre in March 2009.

Hare first collaborated with The Public for his debut play, SLAG, in 1971. Most recently, the artist presented Stuff Happens, about the Iraq War, for a one-night-only engagement at the Public’s Delacorte Theatre in Central Park in 2006. Hare’s Broadway credits include Plenty, The Secret Rapture, Skylight, Amy’s View, The Judas Kiss and The Vertical Hour. In 2007, Hare directed The Year of Magical Thinking on Broadway. The scribe has collaborated twice before with director Daldry, on the Academy Award nominated The Hours and The Reader. As a performer, he appeared on Broadway in 1999 in his solo play Via Dolorosa.

Daldry recently made his Broadway directorial debut with the smash hit Billy Elliot. Additional stage credits include the West End’s Far Away, Via Dolorosa, A Number, Rat in the Skull, Body Talk, An Inspector Calls, Machinal and Search and Destroy, among others. Daldry’s film credits include Billy Elliot, The Hours and The Reader, all of which were Academy Award nominees.