Public Theater, Audible Bringing Back ‘Coal Country’ After Run Was Cut Short Due to COVID (EXCLUSIVE)

variety.com:

Brent Lang Executive Editor of Film and MediaAudible Inc. will produce a return engagement of The Public Theater’s “Coal Country,” a drama based on a real-life West Virginia mining tragedy that was forced to close its original run early due to the pandemic.The acclaimed production was written by Drama Desk winners Jessica Blank and Erik Jensen with original music written and performed by three-time Grammy Award winner Steve Earle.

The show originally opened in spring of 2020, but it was forced to close as COVID upended the live event space. In September 2021, Audible recorded and released the play, with the majority of the original cast, as an Audible Original.

But the revival will enable theater lovers to see the drama in the flesh. “Coal Country” will return to the stage at the Cherry Lane Theatre, beginning previews on March 4 and opening on March 10.

Opening night will mark two years to the day that the original production shut down. Audible Theater also continues to operate its home at the Minetta Lane Theatre, where Robert O’Hara’s reimagined production of Eugene O’Neill’s “Long Day’s Journey Into Night” is currently in previews.Directed by Jessica Blank, “Coal Country” earned rave reviews when it premiered, with The New York Times calling it “devastating and heart-wrenching” and Time Out hailing it as “deeply affecting.”“Coal Country” will feature Mary Bacon, Amelia Campbell, Ezra Knight, Thomas Kopache, Michael Laurence and Deirdre Madigan.