George Segal Makes West End Debut in 19th Art Cast

Robert DeNiro won’t be joining the cast of Art - not yet anyway – but another Hollywood screen legend will be making his West End debut next month in one of the show’s three parts. George Segal, along with previous Art stars Paul Freeman and Richard Griffiths, will comprise the 19th cast for Yasmina Reza’s long-running comedy. They take over from 17 April and continue for a limited 15 weeks to 29 July 2001.

The trio replace the current cast of Charles Lawson, former Spandau Ballet star Gary Kemp and James Gaddas, playing Marc, Serge and Yvan, three friends who fall out over a white-on-white piece of modern art.

George Segal, who plays Serge, is a veteran of over 60 films including Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, A Touch of Class, The Owl and the Pussycat, The Cable Guy, To Die For and The Mirror Has Two Faces.

Freeman, who returns to the role of Marc, has appeared in numerous film and television productions including The Three Kings, Raiders of the Lost Art, ER, Falcon Crest and Inspector Morse. Griffiths first featured as Art’s Marc in 1998 and will now return to play Yvan. His many films include Withnail and I, Sleepy Hollow, Goldeneye, Ghandi and Chariots of Fire. His current stint at Wyndham’s is sandwiched between filming for the first and second films in the upcoming Harry Potter series.

The London production of Art - translated by Christopher Hampton and directed by Matthew Warchus - has long attracted well-known actors for its short stints. The original cast starred Albert Finney, Tom Courtenay and Ken Stott. Subsequent casts have featured Henry Goodman, David Haig, Anton Lesser, Tom Mannion and Art Malik as well as comedians Frank Skinner and Jack Dee. Imported American casts have also brought the likes of Patrick Duffy, Richard Thomas, Judd Hirsch, George Wendt and Stacy Keach to the West End. Another UK production – featuring Nigel Havers, Roger Lloyd Pack and Barry Foster – is touring regionally until 19 May.

Art has won both the Evening Standard and Olivier Awards for Best Comedy, while a simultaneous New York production won the Tony and New York Critics Circle Awards for Best Play.

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