From screen stars to stage favorites, a number of great talents and recognizable faces will grace the Broadway stage this Spring. Here are just a few of the most impressive cast lists of the season:
Six Degrees of Separation
A new revival of Jon Guare’s Six Degrees of Separation, will open at the Barrymore Theatre on April 25th, with previews beginning April 5th and running through July 16th. The play, which in its original production was a Pulitzer Prize finalist and Best Play Tony nominee, focuses on a young black con artist who infiltrates the lives of a wealthy couple, and the revelations that follow. The show stars Allison Janney, one of the most distinguished actresses in TV history with seven acting Emmys, for her roles in The West Wing, Mom and Masters of Sex. She is also an experienced Broadway performer, having received Tony nominations for her work in A View from the Bridge and 9 to 5, and has appeared in countless film roles. While Janney is the biggest name involved, she’s joined on the headline by two other distinguished actors: John Benjamin Hickey, a theater vet who won a Tony Award for the 2011 revival of The Normal Heart, and Corey Hawkins, best known for his roles as Heath on The Walking Dead, Dr. Dre in Straight Outta Compton and Tybalt in the 2013 Broadway production of Romeo and Juliet. Tickets for Six Degrees of Separation can be purchased right through Telecharge, where tickets range from $79-$149.
Hello, Dolly!
One of the most beloved musical comedies of the Golden Age, Hello, Dolly!, returns to Broadway this Spring at the Shubert Theatre, with previews beginning March 15th and officially opening April 20th. The legendary Bette Midler takes on the iconic, showstopping lead role of matchmaking “meddler” Dolly. With a career spanning over four decades, Midler is a best-selling recording artist and accomplished actress and comedian who has won numerous Grammy and Emmy Awards. She is now making a long-awaited return to musical theater. And while Midler is a big enough name to drive record-breaking advanced ticket sales, the cast has only grown more and more stacked as it has been announced. David Hyde Pierce, forever known for his Emmy-winning work as Frasier brother Niles Crane but also a distinguished theater actor (he won a Tony for Lead Actor in a Musical for Curtains) joins the headline as millionaire bachelor Horace Vandergelder. Then there’s two-time Tony-nominee Gavin Creel, star of Thoroughly Modern Millie, Hair, and most recently She Loves Me. Tony-nominees Kate Baldwin (Finian’s Rainbow) and Jennifer Simard (Disaster!) also join the cast, along with Neighbors 2 star Beanie Feldstein. And if you find yourself a Tuesday performance without Bette Midler, no worries – her understudy is Broadway favorite Donna Murphy. When a two-time Tony-winner is an understudy, you know you’ve got some star power. Hello, Dolly tickets can be purchased directly through the box office, where tickets range from $59-$189.
The Present
It’s a bit hard to believe Cate Blanchette, one of the most acclaimed film actresses of the era, has never actually appeared on Broadway before. But that will change after the opening of The Present, at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre January 8th, as Blanchette makes her debut in this steamy vodka-soaked update of Anton Chekhov’s Platonov. Blanchette is a two-time Oscar-winner, for her performances in The Aviator and Blue Jasmine. She’s received huge acclaim in films like Elizabeth, Notes on a Scandal and Carol, and is also well-known as Galadriel in the Lord of the Rings series. While she has no Broadway credits she has an extensive theater background performing around the world, and was the artistic director of the Sydney Theatre Company, where The Present premiered. Also headlining is Richard Roxburgh, another Sydney Theatre vet, who plays Blanchette’s acerbic husband. Previews began on December 17th, and the show will run run through March 29th. The Present tickets are on sale now directly through the box office, where prices start at just $59.
Written by Kevin McCarthy
