A Bermudian Broadway show director is thrilled to be professionally directing a play in his own country for the first time, as part of the Bermuda Festival.

'The Unexpected Man', which opened on Monday night at the City Hall Theatre, is a play about two people who meet in a railway carriage. A writer (Charles Shaughnessy), finds himself on a train car with one of his fans, a French woman (Judy Kuhn).

'The Unexpected Man' was written by Yasmina Reza. The Bermuda Festival production was directed by Joel Froomkin, a Bermudian working in New York City.

"I have been back to Bermuda to visit my family, but I have never directed a show here professionally," said Mr. Froomkin during rehearsals shortly before the play opened this week.

"The last time I was directing here was well over ten years ago."

He said directing in Bermuda had been a fantastic and stress-free experience.

"There is always pressure to get a show up, but I think 90 percent of getting the show right is casting," he said.

"I have a wonderful cast, not just of actors, but of human beings that have been delightful and gracious and very open to work with.

"We have really enjoyed the process. I have brought people in with me to help on the production who are very great people. It has been a really nice prospect. I am happy to share it with the Island. I am really happy to show them a play that I care about."

Only a few weeks before the show came to Bermuda, cast changes were announced. The part of the French woman was originally to be played by Harriett Harris, but she had to pass due to commitments with the new television show 'Desperate Housewives'.

Her replacement, Judy Kuhn, is a well-known Broadway actress who also has a solo album called 'Just in Time'.

"I did have to crash my lines," said Ms Kuhn. "It was a bit daunting, but I think we are there. I feel very fortunate to be here."

Mr. Froomkin said he and the Bermuda Festival organisers decided that 'The Unexpected Man' would be a good choice because of its minimalist nature. It only has a simple stage and two actors.

"It can be rehearsed without enormous amounts of difficulty," said Mr. Froomkin, "even though I ended up rehearsing Charles in Los Angeles and Judy in New York and they only met three days ago. We entered into discussions about it and they cared for the play. We are very excited about the idea. It has been a really nice experience.

"The play has been performed before, but Charles and Judy have never done the show, and I've never done the show. It is a whole new production for the festival. That is unusual because normally they bring in something that already exists. This was done just for the festival."

Mr. Froomkin said that although most of 'The Unexpected Man' consisted of monologue, he didn't think the audience would find it boring.

"The audience won't find it in any way boring, because we have two actors of such an extraordinary calibre that they could read the phone book and it would be fantastic," said Mr. Froomkin. "I think Reza is a brilliant writer. She writes about the human condition and relationships and emotion and the lack of being able to express emotion almost better than anyone else I can think about. She writes in a human palatable way."

Mr. Shaughnessy, who is well-known for his role as Max Sheffield on the hit television show 'The Nanny', said he could identify with the writer he played in 'The Unexpected Man'.

"I understand him," said Mr. Shaughnessy. "I understand his arrogance and his requirement for privacy and solitude, and yet he is an eager schoolboy, desperate for approval and torn between the two."

Mr. Shaughnessy talked about the his character's reaction when the French woman starts to read his book but apparently doesn't recognise him.

"It's great to play that kind of tension and conflict," he said. "He is tortured the whole journey, poor man."

However, while in Bermuda, Mr. Shaughnessy has not had the same problem as his character. Many people have recognised him on the street, particularly 'The Nanny' fans.

"It has been six years since 'The Nanny' ended," said Mr. Shaughnessy. "I have been doing other things. I have been doing some television movies. I shot an episode of a new show in Canada called, 'Young Blazers'. It is musketeers and sword fighting, which was fun. It went to Broadway and it was a great success."