The worldpremiere of Richard Eyre's period drama Stage Beauty starring Billy Crudup, Claire Danes andRupert Everett will close the Tribeca Film Festival in New York on May 8. It isproduced by Tribeca Film Festival founders Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthalthrough their Tribeca Productions.

Stage Beauty is set in 1660s London as King CharlesII decrees that men can no longer portray women on stage, immediately alteringthe fortunes of the celebrated actor Ned Kynaston and his understudy Maria.

The picture waswritten by Jeffrey Hatcher from his stage play and is produced by De Niro,Hardy Justice and Rosenthal with Eyre, Michael Kuhn, James D Stern, RachelCohen and Amir Malin handling executive producer duties.

Ben Chaplin, TomWilkinson, Richard Griffiths, and Zoe Tapper also star in Stage Beauty, which Lions Gate will release in the USin October. Icon EntertainmentInternational is handling international sales.

"I loved Jeffrey Hatcher's play and found it to be verypoignant," Rosenthal said in a statement. "Richard Eyre has taken the originalplay and really enhanced it for the screen, and together Richard and Jeffreyhave created a very powerful and moving film that I think audiences are goingto love."

The festival's 2004incarnation will run from May 1-9 and features more than 150 screenings as wellas panel discussions and film-maker events.