With the summer winding down, I thought now would be a good time to give you all a preview of the Fall 2016 Broadway Season. I will be listing each of the 13 shows in order of when they’ll be opening by the end of the year.
The Encounter
Previews: September 20th; Opening Night: September 29th
Following a run in London, Simon McBurney will be bringing his latest one-man show to Broadway for a limited run. McBurney, who also writes and co-directs his show, took inspiration from Petru Popescu’s novel Amazon Beaming, about National Geographic writer and photographer Loren McIntyre’s experience with tribes along the Amazon River.
Holiday Inn, The New Irving Berlin Musical
Previews: September 1st; Opening Night: October 6th
Presented by Roundabout Theatre Company, a new musical inspired by the 1942 Academy Award-winning film of the same name stars Bryce Pinkham, Lora Lee Gayer, Megan Lawrence, Megan Sikora, Corbin Bleu, & Lee Wilkof. It tells the story of Jim, who leaves the bright lights of show business behind to settle down on his farmhouse in Connecticut. He quickly discovers life isn’t the same without a bit of song and dance. Jim’s luck takes a spectacular turn when he meets Linda, a spirited schoolteacher with talent to spare. Together they turn the farmhouse into a fabulous inn with dazzling performances to celebrate each holiday, from Thanksgiving to the Fourth of July. But when Jim’s best friend Ted tries to lure Linda away to be his new dance partner in Hollywood, will Jim be able to salvage his latest chance at love?
Oh, Hello on Broadway
Previews: September 23rd; Opening Night: October 10th
After an acclaimed run off-Broadway last fall, Nick Kroll & John Mulaney will take on their popular alter egos Gil Faizon & George St. Geegland on Broadway. Faizon & St. Geegland are outrageously opinionated, 70-something, native New Yorkers that Kroll and Mulaney first began performing on the alternative comedy stages in NYC. Honed for over a decade, the fictional duo garnered a cult following and found their way onto a Comedy Central special, viral videos and late night couches everywhere.
Heisenberg
Previews: September 20th; Opening Night: October 13th
Presented by Manhattan Theatre Club, a transfer of the hit off-Broadway play by Simon Stephens (the Tony-winning playwright of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time) starring Mary-Louise Parker & Denis Arndt. Amidst the bustle of a crowded London train station, Clare spots Alex, a much older man, and plants a kiss on his neck. This electric encounter thrusts these two strangers into a life-changing game.
The Cherry Orchard
Previews: September 15th; Opening Night: October 16th
Presented by Roundabout Theatre Company, a new Broadway production of the Anton Chekhov classic adapted by Stephen Karam (the most recent Tony-winning playwright of The Humans) starring Diane Lane (who was actually first and last seen on Broadway in two different productions of The Cherry Orchard in 1977 when she was only 12 years old), Celia Keenan-Bolger, Joel Grey, Tavi Gevinson, John Glover, & Chuck Cooper. Set in Russia at the turn of the twentieth century, The Cherry Orchard chronicles a noblewoman's return to her family estate after a five-year absence to escape troubling memories of her son's death. Lyubov Ranevskaya arrives home to find the cherry orchard in full bloom, but the finances of the estate on the verge of ruin. Lyubov and her brother, Gaev, find themselves scrambling to retain a vision of gentility amidst a climate of huge social and economic transition.
The Front Page
Previews: September 20th; Opening Night: October 20th
A new Broadway production of the 1928 comedy by Ben Hecht & Charles MacArthur starring Nathan Lane, John Slattery, John Goodman, Jefferson Mays, Sherie Renee Scott, Holland Taylor, Robert Morse, Dylan Baker, Micah Stock, David Pittu, & Clark Thorell. The Front Page follows tabloid newspaper reporters in the press room of Chicago’s Criminal Courts Building covering the story of an escaped prisoner. When star reporter Hildy Johnson accidentally discovers the runaway convict, he and his editor Walter Burns conspire to hide the man from the other reporters, while they chase the biggest scoop of their careers.
Falsettos
Previews: September 29th; Opening Night: October 27th
What was originally suppose to take place last season, but was delayed for certain reasons (you can read more about that right here) is happening this season. The very first Broadway revival of 1992 musical by William Finn & James Lapine stars Christian Borle, Stephanie J. Block, Andrew Rannells, Brandon Uranowitz, Tracie Thoms, & Betsy Wolfe. Falsettos follows Marvin, who struggles to create a tight-knit family out of his eclectic array of core relationships (including his ex-wife, his new boyfriend, his adolescent son, his psychiatrist and his neighbors). Amidst a series of monumental life changes, he is forced to reckon with his own views on love, responsibility and what it means to be a man.
Les Liaisons Dangereuses
Previews: October 8th; Opening Night: October 30th
Coming in from the Donmar Warehouse in London is the second Broadway revival of Christopher Hampton’s stage adaptation of the Pierre Choderlos de Laclos novel starring Janet McTeer, Liev Schreiber, & Mary Beth Peil. Les Liaisons Dangereuses follows former lovers, La Marquise de Merteuil and Le Vicomte de Valmont as they compete in games of seduction and revenge. These merciless aristocrats toy with the hearts and reputations of innocents. Merteuil incites Valmont to corrupt the convent-educated Cecile de Volanges before her wedding night but Valmont has other designs. His target is the peerlessly virtuous and happily married Madame de Tourvel.
Natasha, Pierre, & the Great Comet of 1812
Previews: September 30th; Opening Night: November 14th
A transfer of the acclaimed off-Broadway musical based on a portion of Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace stars Josh Groban (in his long-awaited Broadway debut) & Denee Benton. Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 follows Natasha, a young girl who forms a relationship with the attractive rebel Anatole while her betrothed Andrey is off fighting. Andrey's best friend Pierre remains on high alert as the new romance blossoms.
A Bronx Tale
Previews: November 3rd; Opening Night: December 1st
A musical adaptation of Chazz Palminteri’s one-man show which then led to the 1993 film adaptation has a score by Alan Menken & Glenn Slater with direction by Jerry Zaks and get this...Robert De Niro. A Bronx Tale is a streetwise musical that takes you to the stoops of the Bronx in the 1960s, where a young man is caught between the father he loves and the mob boss he’d love to be.
Dear Evan Hansen
Previews: November 14th; Opening Night: December 4th
A transfer of the hit off-Broadway musical from Second Stage Theatre with a score by Benj Pasek & Justin Paul (whose last Broadway show was the Tony nominated musical adaptation of A Christmas Story) and stars Ben Platt as the title character. All his life, Evan Hansen has felt invisible. But when a tragic event shocks the community and thrusts him into the center of a rapidly evolving controversy, Evan is given the opportunity of a lifetime: the chance to be somebody else.
In Transit
Previews: November 10th; Opening Night: December 11th
The very first a cappella musical previously played at Primary Stages off-Broadway in 2010. In Transit follows a group of 11 New Yorkers as they navigate the streets (and tunnels) of the city.
So which of these shows are you most interested in seeing or (if you’re like me and don’t live in New York) hearing about?
The Encounter
Previews: September 20th; Opening Night: September 29th
Following a run in London, Simon McBurney will be bringing his latest one-man show to Broadway for a limited run. McBurney, who also writes and co-directs his show, took inspiration from Petru Popescu’s novel Amazon Beaming, about National Geographic writer and photographer Loren McIntyre’s experience with tribes along the Amazon River.
Holiday Inn, The New Irving Berlin Musical
Previews: September 1st; Opening Night: October 6th
Presented by Roundabout Theatre Company, a new musical inspired by the 1942 Academy Award-winning film of the same name stars Bryce Pinkham, Lora Lee Gayer, Megan Lawrence, Megan Sikora, Corbin Bleu, & Lee Wilkof. It tells the story of Jim, who leaves the bright lights of show business behind to settle down on his farmhouse in Connecticut. He quickly discovers life isn’t the same without a bit of song and dance. Jim’s luck takes a spectacular turn when he meets Linda, a spirited schoolteacher with talent to spare. Together they turn the farmhouse into a fabulous inn with dazzling performances to celebrate each holiday, from Thanksgiving to the Fourth of July. But when Jim’s best friend Ted tries to lure Linda away to be his new dance partner in Hollywood, will Jim be able to salvage his latest chance at love?
Oh, Hello on Broadway
Previews: September 23rd; Opening Night: October 10th
After an acclaimed run off-Broadway last fall, Nick Kroll & John Mulaney will take on their popular alter egos Gil Faizon & George St. Geegland on Broadway. Faizon & St. Geegland are outrageously opinionated, 70-something, native New Yorkers that Kroll and Mulaney first began performing on the alternative comedy stages in NYC. Honed for over a decade, the fictional duo garnered a cult following and found their way onto a Comedy Central special, viral videos and late night couches everywhere.
Heisenberg
Previews: September 20th; Opening Night: October 13th
Presented by Manhattan Theatre Club, a transfer of the hit off-Broadway play by Simon Stephens (the Tony-winning playwright of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time) starring Mary-Louise Parker & Denis Arndt. Amidst the bustle of a crowded London train station, Clare spots Alex, a much older man, and plants a kiss on his neck. This electric encounter thrusts these two strangers into a life-changing game.
The Cherry Orchard
Previews: September 15th; Opening Night: October 16th
Presented by Roundabout Theatre Company, a new Broadway production of the Anton Chekhov classic adapted by Stephen Karam (the most recent Tony-winning playwright of The Humans) starring Diane Lane (who was actually first and last seen on Broadway in two different productions of The Cherry Orchard in 1977 when she was only 12 years old), Celia Keenan-Bolger, Joel Grey, Tavi Gevinson, John Glover, & Chuck Cooper. Set in Russia at the turn of the twentieth century, The Cherry Orchard chronicles a noblewoman's return to her family estate after a five-year absence to escape troubling memories of her son's death. Lyubov Ranevskaya arrives home to find the cherry orchard in full bloom, but the finances of the estate on the verge of ruin. Lyubov and her brother, Gaev, find themselves scrambling to retain a vision of gentility amidst a climate of huge social and economic transition.
The Front Page
Previews: September 20th; Opening Night: October 20th
A new Broadway production of the 1928 comedy by Ben Hecht & Charles MacArthur starring Nathan Lane, John Slattery, John Goodman, Jefferson Mays, Sherie Renee Scott, Holland Taylor, Robert Morse, Dylan Baker, Micah Stock, David Pittu, & Clark Thorell. The Front Page follows tabloid newspaper reporters in the press room of Chicago’s Criminal Courts Building covering the story of an escaped prisoner. When star reporter Hildy Johnson accidentally discovers the runaway convict, he and his editor Walter Burns conspire to hide the man from the other reporters, while they chase the biggest scoop of their careers.
Falsettos
Previews: September 29th; Opening Night: October 27th
What was originally suppose to take place last season, but was delayed for certain reasons (you can read more about that right here) is happening this season. The very first Broadway revival of 1992 musical by William Finn & James Lapine stars Christian Borle, Stephanie J. Block, Andrew Rannells, Brandon Uranowitz, Tracie Thoms, & Betsy Wolfe. Falsettos follows Marvin, who struggles to create a tight-knit family out of his eclectic array of core relationships (including his ex-wife, his new boyfriend, his adolescent son, his psychiatrist and his neighbors). Amidst a series of monumental life changes, he is forced to reckon with his own views on love, responsibility and what it means to be a man.
Les Liaisons Dangereuses
Previews: October 8th; Opening Night: October 30th
Coming in from the Donmar Warehouse in London is the second Broadway revival of Christopher Hampton’s stage adaptation of the Pierre Choderlos de Laclos novel starring Janet McTeer, Liev Schreiber, & Mary Beth Peil. Les Liaisons Dangereuses follows former lovers, La Marquise de Merteuil and Le Vicomte de Valmont as they compete in games of seduction and revenge. These merciless aristocrats toy with the hearts and reputations of innocents. Merteuil incites Valmont to corrupt the convent-educated Cecile de Volanges before her wedding night but Valmont has other designs. His target is the peerlessly virtuous and happily married Madame de Tourvel.
Natasha, Pierre, & the Great Comet of 1812
Previews: September 30th; Opening Night: November 14th
A transfer of the acclaimed off-Broadway musical based on a portion of Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace stars Josh Groban (in his long-awaited Broadway debut) & Denee Benton. Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 follows Natasha, a young girl who forms a relationship with the attractive rebel Anatole while her betrothed Andrey is off fighting. Andrey's best friend Pierre remains on high alert as the new romance blossoms.
A Bronx Tale
Previews: November 3rd; Opening Night: December 1st
A musical adaptation of Chazz Palminteri’s one-man show which then led to the 1993 film adaptation has a score by Alan Menken & Glenn Slater with direction by Jerry Zaks and get this...Robert De Niro. A Bronx Tale is a streetwise musical that takes you to the stoops of the Bronx in the 1960s, where a young man is caught between the father he loves and the mob boss he’d love to be.
Dear Evan Hansen
Previews: November 14th; Opening Night: December 4th
A transfer of the hit off-Broadway musical from Second Stage Theatre with a score by Benj Pasek & Justin Paul (whose last Broadway show was the Tony nominated musical adaptation of A Christmas Story) and stars Ben Platt as the title character. All his life, Evan Hansen has felt invisible. But when a tragic event shocks the community and thrusts him into the center of a rapidly evolving controversy, Evan is given the opportunity of a lifetime: the chance to be somebody else.
In Transit
Previews: November 10th; Opening Night: December 11th
The very first a cappella musical previously played at Primary Stages off-Broadway in 2010. In Transit follows a group of 11 New Yorkers as they navigate the streets (and tunnels) of the city.
So which of these shows are you most interested in seeing or (if you’re like me and don’t live in New York) hearing about?