Kathy Bates Withdraws from McNally’s Devotion Due to Illness

The Philadelphia Theatre Company has announced the postponement of Terrence McNally’s Unusual Acts of Devotion, which was set to star Kathy Bates, due to the star’s illness. The company said, in a statement, that it had decided upon the postponement because McNally wrote the new play specifically with Bates in mind, and another star of her caliber could not be found in time for the show’s first preview in late October.

PTC will replace the show with Being Alive, a new revue of Stephen Sondheim songs, October 23-December 2. The show, which is currently playing the Westport Country Playhouse through September 9, is conceived and directed by Billy Porter. It blends the songs of Sondheim with the poetry of William Shakespeare to tell the universal story of man’s seven ages in African-American musical idioms including soul, jazz, blues, R&B, hip-hop, and gospel.

For more information, call 215-985-0420 or visit www.philadelphiatheatrecompany.org.