THE UNBELIEVERS
By Nick Payne
Directed by Knud Adams
Presented by Manhattan Theatre Club
Previews Tuesday, October 13, 2026
Opening Night Thursday, November 5, 2026
NY City Center Stage I
131 West 55th Street
Manhattan Theatre Club (Nicki Hunter, Artistic Director and Chris Jennings, Executive Director) is pleased to announce full casting for the American premiere of The Unbelievers by Tony and Olivier Award nominee Nick Payne (Constellations and Incognito at MTC) and directed by Tony Award nominee Knud Adams (English, Primary Trust). Performances begin Tuesday, October 13 with opening night on Thursday, November 5 at New York City Center Stage I (131 West 55th Street).
Joining the previously announced Lauren Ambrose (Broadway: My Fair Lady, Exit the King; Television: “Six Feet Under,” “Yellowjackets”) as Miriam Wright and Tom Riley (Broadway: Arcadia; Television: Apple TV’s “Down Cemetery Road”) as David Wright are Jaspal Binning (Television: “Brown Nation,” “New Amsterdam,” “The Newsroom”) as PC Jay Shah/Anil Seth, Brittany Bradford (Broadway: Bernhardt/Hamlet; Off-Broadway: The Comeuppance) as PC Angela Fisher/Mia Olsson, Jack DiFalco (Broadway: The Ferryman, Marvin’s Room, Torch Song) as Benjamin, Tony Award nominee Marjan Neshat (Broadway: English; Off-Broadway: Selling Kabul) as DC Elizabeth Hawkins/Lorraine, Nina Ross (Broadway: To Kill a Mockingbird, The Iceman Cometh) as Nancy Khoury, Hadi Tabbal (Broadway: English; Off-Broadway: Russian Troll Farm) as Rev. Karl Khoury, and Elizabeth Yeoman (Off-Broadway: And Then We Were No More) as Margaret Wright. All of the cast make their MTC debuts with the production.
Faith means believing in something. Especially when it feels impossible. As the years go by and the mystery of the sudden disappearance of Miriam and David’s teenage son remains unsolved, their blended family must figure out how to go on, relearning how to live through the ups and downs of ordinary days in their altered world.
Tony and Olivier Award-nominated writer Nick Payne returns to MTC where his previous credits include the critically acclaimed American premieres of Constellations, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Ruth Wilson in 2015, and Incognito with Geneva Carr, Charlie Cox, Heather Lind, and Morgan Spector in 2016. Tony nominee Knud Adams, the director of the Pulitzer Prize-winning plays English by Sanaz Toosi and Primary Trust by Eboni Booth, makes his MTC debut with Payne’s poignant and disarmingly funny play about the power of hope.
The creative team for The Unbelievers features Paul Steinberg (scenic design), Tony Award nominee Enver Chakartash (costume design), Masha Tsimring (lighting design), Sinan Refik Zafar (sound design), Cookie Jordan (hair & make-up design), and Deborah Hecht (dialect & vocal coach). Casting is by Caparelliotis Casting & Kelly Gillespie. Production Stage Manager is Sara Sahin.