Jack Goes Boating
March 15, 2011 - April 17, 2011
By Bob Glaudini
Directed By Allen Nause

A smart and witty romantic comedy about love blossoming in the most unlikely of places.  Jack – a lovable loser who is desperately romantically challenged – finds the girl of his dreams.  His plan for winning her affections is pinned on a boat ride in Central Park and cooking a gourmet meal – never mind the fact that he doesn’t know how to swim and can’t even heat a can of soup.

Jack Goes Boating was an off-Broadway hit of 2007 and will be released as a film in 2010.  Philip Seymour Hoffman makes his directorial debut with this film and reprises the title role he originated off-Broadway.  Variety called the play, “an endearing romantic comedy…witty and knowing and all heart.”

SYNOPSIS
In the dead of winter, we meet Jack, a limo driver who has vague dreams of landing a job with the MTA, a mild obsession with a reggae song, and has begun a half-hearted attempt at growing dreadlocks. He spends most of his time hanging out with his best friend and fellow driver, Clyde and Clyde’s wife, Lucy.
The couple sets Jack up with Connie, a co-worker of Lucy’s at Dr. Bob’s Funeral Home in Brooklyn. Being with Connie inspires Jack to learn to cook, pursue a new career, and take swimming lessons from Clyde so he can give Connie the romantic boat ride she wants. But as Jack and Connie cautiously circle commitment, Clyde and Lucy’s marriage begins to disintegrate. From there, we watch as each couple must come face to face with the inevitable path of their relationship.

Recommended for high school and adult audiences.

PRODUCTION HISTORY
Jack Goes Boating began as a staged reading of LAByrinth Company member Bob Glaudini's play at LAByrinth's 2005 Summer Intensive.  Two years later, Artistic Directors Philip Seymour Hoffman & John Ortiz, along with fellow members Daphne Rubin-Vega and Beth Cole, brought the script to life for a 2007 off-Broadway LAByrinth production at the Public Theater.  After the extremely successful run, Glaudini adapted his work to the screen and brought along three original cast members for Jack's new incarnation. Since its premiere,  Jack Goes Boating has been produced by Chicago’s Thunder & Lightning Ensemble, had a sold-out run  in Berkeley’s Aurora Theatre and made its Australian premiere at Red Stitch Actor’s Theatre in Melbourne. Other American productions include at Cleveland’s Sometimes in the Silence Theatre and Sacramento’s B Street Theatre.The film made its premiere at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival and will be released by Overture Films with Philip Seymour Hoffman making his directorial debut. Bob Glaudini will adapt the play for the screen.Most of the original cast will reprise their roles, though Amy Ryan has replaced Beth Cole as Connie. The film will be released September 17, 2010.

PLAYWRIGHT
An Italian-American actor, Robert Glaudini made his film debut in the 1971 comedy Lady Liberty. Glaudini starred in two offbeat experimental features for underground independent filmmaker Jon Jost: he's seedy private investigator Frank Goya in Angel City and the titular scuzzy drug dealer in Chameleon. Robert gave a solid and engaging performance as edgy hero Paul Dean in the enjoyably cruddy futuristic 3-D sci-fi/horror schlocker Parasite. Glaudini was effectively nasty as evil magician DelGatto in The Alchemist. Robert's other memorable cinematic roles are scientist Dr. Wolf in the quirky science fiction sleeper Wavelength, sleazy wrestling promoter Dr. Tweed in Grunt! The Wrestling Movie, FBI agent Nash in the powerful Mississippi Burning, and creepy high school janitor Shultz in the fun teen slasher romp Cutting Class. Glaudini did guest spots on the TV shows Hunter and Crime Story. Outside of his film and television work, Robert has had a long and distinguished stage career as both an actor and playwright. Glaudini has been a member of the New York stage ensemble LAByrinth Theater Company since 2004. He has written the plays The Poison Tree, Dutch Heart of Man, and Jack Goes Boating. Robert Glaudini is the father of actress Lola Glaudini; he portrayed her dad on several episodes of the TV series "NYPD Blue." He lives in New York City.

PRESENTING SEASON SPONSOR:

US Bank

INDIVIDUAL PRODUCERS:
Marcy & Richard Schwartz

SHOW PRODUCERS:

Ater Wynne

Vibrant Table

 


The Reviews...

“An endearing romantic comedy …witty and knowing and all heart.” - Variety

"Sweet and snarky is a tough combination to pull off, but it adds up to what could be the feel-good romantic comedy of this and a future summer." - San Francisco Chronicle

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