Jim Parsons to star in Broadway's 'Act of God'

NEW YORK, Jan. 29 (UPI) -- The Big Bang Theory star Jim Parsons is to play the title character in the new Broadway comedy An Act of God, producer Jeffrey Finn announced Thursday.

The limited engagement is to begin previews May 5 at Studio 54. The show will officially open May 28.

Joe Mantello will direct the play, which is based on the book "written by God and transcribed by David Javerbaum." Javerbaum is a 13-time Emmy Award-winner for his work as a head writer and executive producer for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. He also is the curator of the Twitter account @TheTweetOfGod, which has over 1.75 million followers.

A news release announcing the play cheekily proclaimed: "When reached for comment through His press agent, God described An Act of God as 'a 90-minute conversation in which I will reveal the mysteries of the Bible and answer some of the greatest existential questions that plague mankind. "I chose Jim to play Me because I relish the irony of telling the real story of the Six Days of Creation through the star of The Big Bang Theory. Plus, he's funny. The theater was also chosen for ironic reasons, as Studio 54 -- up to this point -- has been the single most God-less place in the universe. And as for our director, Joe Mantello, that was not ironic. I've been a fan of his since Wicked!'"