Scott Lowell has been added to the WTF cast of The Elephant Man. Photo by Steve Granitz.

Update! (7/4) : Our In-Depth Interview with Bradley Cooper and Preview of The Elephant Man. Click me.

The Queer as Folk fan websites lit up with the news that Scott Lowell of that series was to join the gorgeous Patricia Clarkson and “Sexiest Man Alive 2011″ Bradley Cooper for The Elephant Man at the Williamstown Theatre Festival. Many wish it had been QAF’s Randy Harrison who is not appearing at the Berkshire Theatre Festival in 2012, the first year he has missed in the past half dozen summers. Randy’s fans burned up the phone lines to the Berkshire Theatre Group asking why. And our season announcements had several comments posted by fans lamenting the loss. The reason is simple: the cast for Queer as Folk was exceptional and Harrison has demonstrated that he is a masterful actor over and over again by taking to stages all over the country.

The rumor mill may start up again with the two male stars Cooper and Lowell sightings on the streets of Williamstown. Once, a couple of years ago, Cooper joined another WTF regular, Vincent Garber, for an opening and it was just minutes before rumors started flying that they were a new item. At the time Cooper said it was “fantastic” that people thought he was gay. But anyone who watched closely knows he preferred the likes of Renee Zellweger.

At the time, Cooper said: “People thought we were dating. It was all over the internet. It was the first time I read a rumor like that about me, and I just thought it was fantastic.”

More News from WTF

Bradley Cooper

The news of Scott Lowell joining the cast came from Williamstown Theatre Festival Artistic Director Jenny Gersten’s announcement yesterday of the full cast and creative team for The Elephant Man, which will be presented on the Nikos Stage from July 25 through August 5 (opening July 26).

The Elephant Man by Bernard Pomerance is directed by Scott Ellis (WTF’s The Understudy, Broadway’s Harvey). Joining the previously announced cast members Patricia Clarkson (WTF’s The Ride Down Mt. Morgan, Pieces of April) as Mrs. Kendal and Bradley Cooper (WTF’s The Understudy, Limitless) as John Merrick, the titular Elephant Man, are Tony Award winner Shuler Hensley (Oklahoma!, Young Frankenstein) as Ross/Bishop How/Snork, Scott Lowell (“Queer as Folk”) as Will/Lord John/Earl, Alessandro Nivola (WTF’s As You Like It, Coco Before Chanel) as Frederick Treves, Marguerite Stimpson (Butley) as Sandwich/Countess/Alexandra, and Henry Stram (WTF’s The Importance of Being Earnest) as Carr Gomm/Conductor.

From a desperate existence in a Victorian freak show to his days as the toast of London high society, the life of John Merrick, the Elephant Man, has fascinated the world for well over a century. Though his disfigurement brought notoriety, it was his unblemished inner humanity that most astonished those around him, compelling examinations of their own prejudices and beliefs. Shattering our illusions of normalcy, The Elephant Man by Bernard Pomerance weaves Merrick’s tale into a parable on beauty, innocence, and human dignity.

The creative team includes Timothy Mackabee (Scenic and Projections Design), Clint Ramos (Costume Design), Philip Rosenberg (Lighting Design), and Tom Kochan (Original Music/Sound Design). Davin DeSantis is the Production Stage Manager.

Tickets to the Williamstown Theatre Festival may be purchased online (www.wtfestival.org), by phone at 413-597-3400, or in person at the ’62 Center for Theatre and Dance Box Office at 1000 Main St (Route 2), Williamstown, MA 02167.

The Festival’s Nikos Stage is an intimate 173-seat venue that regularly sells out in advance from within the pool of Festival donors.
In other casting news, Obie Award winner Heidi Schreck (How the World Began, Circle Mirror Transformation) joins the cast of Last of the Red Hot Lovers as Jeanette Fisher, replacing previously announced Lili Taylor, who will not appear in the production due to scheduling conflicts.

As previously announced, the complete 2012 Williamstown Theatre Festival season runs from June 26 – August 19, 2012 and includes Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest, a Preview Production of the new musical Far From Heaven, and a new translation of Ivan Turgenev’s A Month in the Country on the Main Stage, with Lucy Boyle’s The Blue Deep, Neil Simon’s Last of the Red Hot Lovers, Bernard Pomerance’s The Elephant Man, and Katori Hall’s WHADDABLOODCLOT!!! on the Nikos Stage. The season also included a special workshop production of David Byrne’s Here Lies Love, which played at nearby MASS MoCA.