Kiss of the Spider Woman opened at the Broadhurst Theatre May 3, 1993, after beginning preview performances April 19. The musical, starring Tony Award winners Chita Rivera, Brent Carver, and Anthony Crivello, played 16 previews and 904 performances before closing July 1, 1995. The musical would go on to be nominated for 11 Tony Awards, winning seven, including Best Musical, Best Actress for Rivera, and Best Actor for Carver.
The musical, featuring music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb, and book by Terrence McNally, tells the story of an Argentine revolutionary who is thrown in a prison cell with a gay man jailed on a morals charge who escapes from the terrifying reality of prison life into fantasies featuring a mysterious 1940s movie star.
Rounding out the cast were Kirsti Carnahan as Marta, Herndon Lackey as Warden, Merle Louise as Molina's Mother, Philip Hernández as Estaban, Michael McCormick as Marcos with Gary Schwartz, Jerry Christakos, Joshua Finkel, Colton Green, Keith McDaniel, Robert Montano, Dan O'Grady, Aurelio Padron, Raymond Rodriguez, and John Norman Thomas in the ensemble. Rounding out the company were Lorraine Foreman and Dorothy Stanley as standbys and Gregory Mitchell as the swing.
Kiss of the Spider Woman, directed by Harold Prince, featured choreography by Vincent Paterson, additional choreography by Rob Marshall, scenic and projection design by Jerome Sirlin, costume design by Florence Klotz, lighting design Howell Binkley, and sound design by Martin Levan with stage management by Beverly Randolph and Clayton Phillips. Visit the Playbill Vault for the complete cast and creative team.
