Mike Leigh: "Two Thousand Years"

Here's something I look forward to next season at The New Group: The US premiere of Mike Leigh's Two Thousand Years.

While the New Group seems to have a cardiograph-worthy sporadic season every year, somehow the combination of Scott Elliott and Mike Leigh (Ecstasy, Abigail's Party) always comes through.

Synopsis?

Mike Leigh (Abigail's Party, Smelling a Rat) returns to our stage with his latest play, which was a massive hit in London two years ago. An assimilated Jewish family in suburban London is upset when their 20-something son, who still lives with them, suddenly becomes seriously devout.

The rifts in this close-knit family are a rare look at Jewish life in Britain and shows how lives are affected by emotional connections with the ongoing crisis in Israel.

Intriguing, yes? Especially coming from one of the greatest living Jewish Leftist dramatists. (Okay, a large category.)

January 08. Mark your calendars.