Pittsburgh Public Theater

Its juicy characters, scathing humor, and emotional fireworks have made The Little Foxes one of the absolute essentials of the American theater. Living in 1900 in the New South, the wealthy Hubbard clan will go to any lengths to get even richer. When a lucrative business venture beckons them, they turn against each other in a vicious struggle fueled by greed and the lust for power. Acclaimed actress Helena Ruoti will play the coveted role of Regina, made famous on the screen by Bette Davis.

Recommended for high school aged audiences and older.

The engagement of Helena Ruoti in this production has been generously supported by Richard W. Moriarty, M.D.

Run Time: 2 hours, 15 minutes

26 or younger?:  Tickets are only $15.  Call 412.316.1600 for details.

Groups of 10+ save big!  Reserve your group tickets now for the best seats available. Call Becky at 412.316.8200, ext. 704 for details.

Read The Little Foxes newsletter for information about Lillian Hellman.

 LILLIAN HELLMAN (Playwright) was one of the most accomplished, independent, and controversial women of the 20^th century. Her writing includes plays, screenplays, and memoirs. Born in New Orleans in 1905, as a child she moved with her family to New York. While growing up she returned often to the South, which is the setting of her plays The Little Foxes, Another Part of the Forest, and Toys in the Attic. As a young woman she married writer Arthur Kober and attended New York University and Columbia, but never graduated. Early in her career she wrote book reviews for the New York Herald Tribune and worked as a script reader at MGM studio. She divorced in 1932, shortly after beginning a relationship with writer Dashiell Hammett, which lasted until his death in 1961. Her 1934 play, The Children's Hour, moved Hellman into the upper echelon of American writers working on Broadway and in Hollywood, a success that would last for more than 20 years. Hellman was vocal about the complicated politics of the time and her activities brought her both favor (a presidential command performance) and fallout (she was called before the House UnAmerican Activities Committee). In the last quarter of her life she wrote several memoirs, including An Unfinished Woman, which won a National Book Award. She died in 1984.

 ROSS BICKELL* (Ben Hubbard) last appeared at Pittsburgh Public Theater in The Gin Game. He has also performed in Public Theater productions of Arms and the Man, Romeo and Juliet, The Subject Was Roses, Mary Stuart, and The Tempest. He appeared on Broadway in Noises Off, The Iceman Cometh, and A Few Good Men. Off Broadway credits include the OBIE Award-winning Waste, Remembrance, Privates on Parade, Somewhere in the Pacific, The Crucible, and Down by the Ocean. Last season, he returned to Pittsburgh for A Marriage Minuet directed by Tracy Brigden at City Theatre. Regional theater credits include productions for the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Arena Stage, Alley Theatre, Huntington Theatre, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Guthrie Theater, Kennedy Center, Pioneer Theatre, Virginia Stage, Philadelphia Theatre, and Buffalo's Studio Arena Theatre. Mr. Bickell will appear in an upcoming episode of "30 Rock" and the movie The Fighter. Film and television credits include Airport '77, Major Payne, "Fantasy Island," "WKRP in Cincinnati," and many other canceled series. Mr. Bickell is a repeat offender on "Law & Order" and has also guest starred on Comedy Central's "Strangers with Candy." 

LINDA HASTON* (Addie) is thrilled to be making her performance debut at Pittsburgh Public Theater. She has directed and performed in several seasons with various Pittsburgh theater companies. Some favorite performance roles: Henry in The Club, Irene Page in Bubbling Brown Sugar starring Vivian Reed, Lily Ann Green in Lynn Nottage's Crumbs from the Table of Joy, Jeannette in City Theatre's production of Crowns, Tituba in Quantum Theatre's production of The Crucible, and Mrs. Dickson in Lynn Nottage's Intimate Apparel at City Theatre. In the 2008-2009 season at Off the Wall Theatre in Washington, PA she directed three successful productions: Seasons Greetings, How I Learned to Drive, and Four Dogs and a Bone. She will be directing, performing, and choreographing the final 2009-2010 season production: the OBIE-winning The Club. Linda holds a BFA in theater and will be an adjunct teacher of performance at the University of Pittsburgh for the Fall/Winter semester. She is also affiliated with the 2009 inaugural launch of the CRAE (Culturally Responsive Arts Education) Program and will be a teaching artist in theater at Lincoln Middle School for grades 5 through 8.

LARA HILLIER* (Alexandra Giddens) is thankful to return to her hometown of Pittsburgh and her family at The Public, where she has appeared in Metamorphoses and The Tempest (with Brian Murray). Also under the direction of Ted Pappas, Ms. Hillier has worked on Mary Stuart and Much Ado About Nothing and is a multiple winner of PPT's annual Shakespeare Monologue & Scene Competition. Other Pittsburgh credits include the world premiere of Le Grand Meaulnes (Quantum), She Stoops to Conquer (PICT), and Accidental Death of an Anarchist at Carnegie Mellon University, where she received her BFA in Drama this past spring. In addition, she studied Shakespeare at the Drama Centre at Central Saint Martin's College in London, UK. She now lives in New York City and has appeared on CBS' "As the World Turns." She is a proud member of Actors' Equity Association. http://www.lara-hillier.com/

WALI JAMAL (Cal) is happy to make his Public Theater debut. Wali most recently played Pittsburgh Steelers' coach Mike Tomlin in Off the Record IX: High School Confidential. He also performed as King Hedley in August Wilson's Seven Guitars, and wrote and performed Martin R. Delany: The Pittsburgh Years, both at Pittsburgh Playwrights Theater. Wali is a resident of Downtown Pittsburgh.


CHRIS LANDIS* (Leo) is making his Pittsburgh Public Theater debut. He performed in New York in Out of the Sandbox (2009 Midtown International Theatre Festival). Regional credits include Lost in Yonkers (Pioneer Theatre Company); Shakespeare's R&J (Repertory Theatre of St. Louis); Merry Wives of Windsor, Romeo & Juliet, Richard II, Of Mice and Men, and A Child's Christmas In Wales (Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey); Three Musketeers (u/s The Acting Company); A Midsummer Night's Dream and The Skin of Our Teeth (Chautauqua Theatre Company); Romeo & Juliet and A Muse in Love (Summer Theatre of New Canaan). Training: The Hartt School at the University of Hartford.

DEIRDRE MADIGAN* (Birdie Hubbard) is thrilled to be back at The Public where she has appeared in Mary Stuart, Much Ado About Nothing (dir. Ted Pappas), Spinning into Butter (dir. Eddie Gilbert), and Betty's Summer Vacation (dir. Munson Hicks). Broadway: After the Night and the Music (dir. Daniel Sullivan). Off Broadway: Barbra's Wedding (dir. David Warren), Major Crimes (dir. Arthur Penn), and Jigsaws (dir. Susie Fuller). Other regional credits include All the Kings Men at the Intiman Theatre (dir. Pam MacKinnon); The Diary of Anne Frank at the Denver Center (dir. Paul Barnes); A Marriage Minuet at Westport Country Playhouse and City Theatre  (dir. Tracy Brigden); Dinner With Friends and Julius Caesar at Pioneer Theater Company (dir. Charles Morey); and Lips Together, Teeth Apart at George Street Theatre (dir. Michael Morris). National tour of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (dir. Anthony Page).TV: "Law & Order" and "Law & Order C.I."

MICHAEL MCKENZIE* (Horace Giddens) appeared previously at PPT as Creon in Oedipus the King, Don Pedro in Much Ado About Nothing, and Sebastian in The Tempest. Broadway credits include Waiting in the Wings, The Man Who Came to Dinner, and Eastern Standard. Tour: The Acting Company. Off Broadway: Kari Floren's Voices of Swords, If Wishes Were Horses, and A Late Supper. Regional: South Coast Repertory, Hartford Stage, Pioneer Theatre, Portland Stage, Connecticut Repertory, Caldwell Theater, Capital Repertory, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Olney Theater. Film and television: The Boy Who Cried Bitch, "Law & Order," "Kidnapped," "Hack," "Chicago Hope," "As the World Turns," "One Life to Live," and many episodes of "Babylon 5."

HELENA RUOTI* (Regina Giddens) is thrilled to be returning to Pittsburgh Public Theater where she appeared last season as Ann Landers/Eppie Lederer in The Lady with All the Answers. As an actor in the Pittsburgh region her career encompasses leading roles in over a dozen productions at the Public. Favorites include Adriana in Comedy of Errors, Jocasta in Oedipus the King, Hannah in Night of the Iguana, Masha in Three Sisters, and the title roles in Hedda Gabler and Edith Stein. She has made many notable performances at City Theatre, Three Rivers Shakespeare Festival, Pittsburgh Irish & Classical Theatre, barebones productions and the Pittsburgh Playhouse; as well as appearances with the International Poetry Forum and the Pittsburgh Symphony. Favorites among these include Maria Callas in Master Class at City; King Lear, The Seagull and this past spring as Elinore/Esme in Tom Stoppard's Rock' n' Roll with PICT. Helena also performed two seasons with the Philadelphia Theatre Company. Helena is a recipient of a Post-Gazette Performer of the Year Award and the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust's Creative Achievement Award for Established Artist. She was also honored with City Theater's Robert M. Frankel award for outstanding commitment to new play creation and support of the arts.

JOHN SHEPARD* (Oscar Hubbard) previously appeared in The Public's production of Mary Stuart. Most recently, John created the role of Ignac in City Theatre's premiere of Speak American speaking only Slovak. This past summer he directed Evita at Vacationland Theatre in Maine. Last season he played Willy Loman in the Playhouse REP's production of Death of a Salesman (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Performer of the Year). He has also appeared in many productions for Quantum (most recently Mouth to Mouth) and PICT. John has appeared on Broadway (A View from the Bridge and American Buffalo), Off Broadway, and at some of the country's most respected regional theaters. He has appeared in films and television (the upcoming film Hollywood and Wine and George Romero's Dust on cable). He chairs the theatre department at Point Park and is the author of Auditioning and Acting for the Camera.

PHILIP WINTERS* (William Marshall) is an Assistant Professor of Theatre Arts at Point Park University, where he teaches acting, voice, and theatre history. He is the first graduate of the MFA program in Theatre Arts at Point Park University. Philip has appeared in numerous productions with the Playhouse Repertory Company, as well as St. Vincent Summer Theatre, Pittsburgh Irish & Classical Theatre, Pittsburgh Public Theater, and others. Recently, he appeared in That Championship Season and Mojo for the Playhouse REP. He was also recently featured in the film Homecoming, with Mischa Barton, and the CBS medical drama "Three Rivers." Philip lives in Pittsburgh with his wife Kim and their beautiful girls, Malle and Elsie Jane.