B'way/Off-B'way Update: Corruption at LCT; More Cabaret Casting; Etc.

Who will play Rupert Murdoch
in J.T. Rogers' Corruption?
Credit: Fox

Lincoln Center Theater will present Corruption, a new play by J.T. Rogers and directed by Tony winner Bartlett Sher (LCT's My Fair Lady, The King and I and South Pacific), at the Mitzi Newhouse Theater, previews beginning Feb. 15 and opening March 11. Based on Dial M for Murdoch: News Corporation and The Corruption of Britain by Tom Watson and Martin Hickman, this epic work centers on the phone hacking scandal of 2011 that involved Rupert Murdoch's media empire. Rogers' previous plays Oslo and Blood and Gifts played Lincoln Center. Oslo won the 2017 Tony, New York Drama Critics Circle, Outer Critics, Drama Desk, Drama League, Lortel, and Obie awards; and was nominated for the Olivier and Evening Standard Awards for Best Play. Casting will be announced at a later date.

 

More Cabaret Casting: Tony and Emmy winner Bebe Neuwirth (Sweet Charity, Chicago, Cheers) and Obie winner Steven Skybell (Fiddler in Yiddish) will join the cast of the upcoming revival of Cabaret, playing Fraulein Schmidt and Herr Schultz respectively. They join the previously announced Eddie Redmayne as the Emcee, Gayle Rankin as Sally Bowles, and Ato Blankson-Wood as Cliff. Previews begin April 1 at the August Wilson Theater with an opening celebration stretching over two night starting April 20 and reviews coming out on April 21.

B'way Update: Cabaret Stars and Dates Confirmed

Gayle Rankin and Eddie Redmayne
will star in Cabaret on Broadway
Credit: Mason Poole

Star casting and dates have been confirmed for the upcoming revival of Cabaret, the fifth Broadway production of the Kander and Ebb musical based on John van Druten's I Am a Camera and Christopher Isherwood's Berlin Stories. Oscar and Tony winner Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything, Red) will repeat his London, Olivier winning performance as the Emcee and Gayle Rankin (HBO's House of the Dragon) will play Sally Bowles, the tragic nightclub singer. This immersive production directed by Rebecca Frecknall began life in London's West End in November 2021 and went on to win seven Olivier Awards, the most for any musical revival. For the Broadway transfer, the August Wilson Theater will be transformed into Berlin's Kit Kat Klub of the play's setting with an in-the-round auditorium and "dream spaces" where audience members can enjoy pre-show entertainment, drinks and dining. Ticketholders will have timed entries to partake of the pre-show events.

B'way Update: Cabaret, Purlie, Second Stage, Cats, etc.

Eddie Redmayne in the
London revival of Cabaret which
may be transferring to Broadway in 2024.
Credit: Marc Brenner

It's not official, but according to a report by Philip Boroff in Broadway Journal, the hit London revival of Cabaret will transfer to Broadway with previews beginning in March of 2024 ahead of an April opening. According to Boroff, Oscar, Tony and Olivier winner Eddie Redmayne is slated to repeat his award-winning performance as the Emcee in this immersive staging. Rebecca Franknell will repeat her staging which included an immersive experience in the world of the Kit Kat Klub in 1930s Berlin. This will be the fifth Broadway production of the musical based on John Van Druten's I Am a Camera which was in turn derived from Christopher Isherwood's Berlin Stories about the reckless Sally Bowles in the decadent German capital before the rise of the Third Reich. Harold Prince's original 1966 production starred Jill Haworth, Joel Grey, Jack Gilford, Lotte Lenya and ran for 1,165 performances. The 1972 movie version directed by Bob Fosse won 8 Oscars including Best Actress for Liza Minnelli and Best Supporting Actor for Grey. Grey returned to the Emcee role for a 1987 revival. Alan Cumming and Natasha Richardson headlined a 1998 revival which also originated in London and ran for 2,377 performances. This staging was revived in 2014 also with Cumming and ran for 388 performances.