Nathan Lane exits London's 'Producers'

LONDON, Dec. 2 (UPI) -- Nathan Lane, who saved the London production of Mel Brooks's "The Producers" last month, will leave the musical In January.

Lane will be replaced in the role of Max Bialystock by Brad Oscar of the current Broadway production, it was announced Wednesday.

Lane, the original Max on Broadway, rushed to London to open the show's production there when Richard Dreyfuss had to drop out of the cast for reasons of health. He will play his last Max on Jan. 8 and Oscar will take over Jan. 10. Oscar will leave the New York production Dec. 12 and will be replaced by his understudy, John Treacy Egan, for a week.

John Barlow, spokesman for the show, said that on Dec. 12, the role of the shyster Broadway producer will be taken over in New York by Richard Kind, and Alan Ruck will replace Hunter Foster as Leo Bloom, Max's guileless sidekick, on Jan. 11. "The Producers" is in its fifth season on Broadway, and ticket sales are showing no signs of slowing down.