Curtain Call: ‘Death of a Salesman,’ This Time With A Focus On The African American Experience, Makes Its Return To Broadway
Wendell Pierce and Sharon D Clarke in Death of a Salesmen - Robbie Jack/Getty
Broadway: Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman is central to United States culture . From classroom readings to stage adaptations, this landmark script has transcended mediums and spanned generations due to its humane dissection of the idealized American Dream. Last month, the Loman family returned to Broadway for the play’s fifth revival since its original debut in 1949.
Following a successful run in London, Wendell Pierce and Sharon D Clarke will be reprising their roles as Willy and Linda Loman at the Hudson Theatre. For the first time in Broadway history, the story will be told from an African American perspective. Directed by Olivier Award winner Miranda Cromwell, this production will run until January 15 next year.
Topdog/Underdog, Suzan-Lori Parks’ Pulitzer-winning play, will be returning to Broadway for its 20th-anniversary production. This dark and humorous narrative follows the lives of two brothers, Lincoln, and Booth, who cope with the challenges of racism, poverty, and the memories of a tormenting childhood.
Directed by Tony Award-winner Kenny Leon, the most recent rendition stars Corey Hawkins and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as the troubled siblings. Praised by critics across the country and was most notably referred to it as “a poetic passion play in which the metaphorical crucifix is American history.” The play opened in late October at the John Golden Theatre and will run till mid-January.
Manu Narayan and Mia Katigbak in A Delicate Balance - Carol Rosegg
Off Broadway: Edward Albee’s highly acclaimed drama A Delicate Balance has hit the ground running with its Off-Broadway debut at the Connelly Theatre. The plot is centered around Agnes and Tobias, a middle-aged couple trying to negotiate the presence of unwelcome guests in their home, from Agnes’s alcoholic sister to supposed friends Harry and Edna.
Directed by Jack Cummings III, this is the first time the play will feature a roster packed with Asian American actors. Mia Katigbak and Manu Narayan will take on the roles of the hosts with support from Carmen M. Herlihy, Paul Juhn, Rita, and Tina Chilip. Will the complacent couple be able to restore balance in their chaotic household? Find out before the play closes on November 19.
Meanwhile, on Stage 42, Kinky Boots has been making waves since it opened in late August. Based on true events, it tells the story of Charlie, a struggling shoe factory owner, and Lola, an entertainer full of ideas. This seeming mismatch, despite them being on different wavelengths, turns into an unlikely friendship when the two cross paths. As the two join forces to turn the factory around, it turns out they have far more in common than it seems.
Directed by Jerry Mitchell, this Off-Broadway musical is a stage adaptation of the film it shares its name. With a deep cast that features Callum Francis, Christian Douglas and Danielle Hope as well as music by Cyndi Lauper, the play will run until February 2023.
Khamary Rose and Kay Sibal star in Invincible
Regional: New Jersey’s Paper Mill Playhouse has revealed the initial casting of its 2023 production of Disney's Hercules. The show will take place from February 16 to March 19 next year and will be directed by Lear deBessonet, who also led the stage adaptation's 2019 world premiere at the Public Theater's free Shakespeare in the Park.
The cast will feature Isabelle McCalla, Shuler Hensley, James Monroe Iglehart and Bradley Gibson. More details on casting will soon be announced. Additionally, Hercules will also feature music by Alan Menken and lyrics by David Zippel.
Invincible, the musical reimaging of Romeo and Juliet, has announced its cast for its world premiere at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills, California. Set in a war-torn metropolis where a newly elected chancellor vows to return the city to its orthodox roots, two lovers navigate their way through a polarizing landscape.
Directed by Tiffany Nichole Greene, the production will feature old and new songs by Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo.
The cast will feature Khamary Rose as Romeo, Kay Sibal as Juliet, Sharon Leal as Madame Capulet, Dionne Gipson as Madame Montague, Brennin Hunt as Paris, Ari Notartomaso as Benvolio, Julia Harriman as Nura, Jon Patrick Walker as Friar, Aaron Alcaraz as Mercutio, and Josh Strobl as Tybalt. The production will also have music direction and vocal arrangements by Jesse Vargas, arrangements by Vargas and Giraldo, orchestrations by Giraldo and Vargas, casting by the Telsey Office's Ryan Bernard Tymensky, and choreography by Galen Hooks. It will run from November 22 to December 18 at the Bram Goldsmith Theater.
Maurice Paige and Theodore Jantjies - Erina Niemand
International: Nine years after its first run, South African actors Theodore Jantjies and Maurice Paige are bringing Platform 9 back to the Baxter in Cape Town. Along with renowned actor and producer Christo Davis, this two-man comedy show will run from 13 December until 7 January next at the theatre’s Gold Arrow Studio. Platform 9: Coming Home is a team effort between three childhood friends and will be performed in Afrikaans as well as some English.
"The Baxter has always been where my heart resides. It is the theatre where Platform 9: Coming Home had its first run. We are honored to bring the last installment of the trilogy to Baxter. Even more so, we are humbled to be back on-stage entertaining Cape Town," said Davis, who wrote and directed the show.
Artistic Director of Canada’s Talk Is Free Theatre (TIFT), Michael Torontow, has announced programming plans for a 2022/23 season in Argentina. For the performances, they will use a new language translation tool that was developed as part of the ARIA Service Project. Spanish translations will appear through smart glasses provided to each attendee.
So far, the schedule for Argentina involves some of TIFT’s recent successful works: Tales of an Urban Indian by Darrell Dennis, which is staged on a moving city bus, is set to make its South American debut this November. Next year, a production of Sweeney Todd, directed by Mitchell Cushman and starring Michael Torontow in the title role, will transfer to Buenos Aires for Festival Temporada Alta from February 19 and 24, 2023. In March, For Both Resting and Breeding, a play by Ottawa-based Adam Meisner that TIFT premiered in 2018 and then took to Australia two years later, is scheduled for four performances in Buenos. Further programming for late Spring is expected to be announced in January.
