MCC Theater has unveiled its 2019–2020 programming. The upcoming season will see the world premiere of Ross Golan's musical The Wrong Man, a new romantic comedy by acclaimed School Girls playwright Jocelyn Bioh, and premieres from C.A. Johnson (The Climb), Lucy Thurber (Transfers), and Theresa Rebeck (Bernardt/Hamlet).
The 33rd season will be staged at MCC's Robert W. Wilson MCC Theater Space on 52nd Street. “Our new home has already enriched the experience of our friends, neighbors, and audience," says Will Cantler, co-artistic director of MCC Theater. "This season ahead is a banquet and we will surprise you all with the ways we set the table.”
Kicking off the season this fall will be The Wrong Man, a new musical with book, music, and lyrics by multi-platinum songwriter Golan. The artist, who has worked with Maroon 5, Nicki Minaj, Michael Bubl, Ariana Grande, and more, has teamed up with Hamilton’s Thomas Kail and Alex Lacamoire, who will direct and pen orchestrations, respectively.
Set in Reno, Nevada, The Wrong Man is the story of Duran, a man scraping by who is framed for a murder he didn’t commit. Performances will begin September 18 ahead of an October 27 opening in the Newman Mills Theater. Travis Wall will be the show's choreographer.
Also tapped for the fall will be the Off-Broadway premiere of Seared, which reunites playwright and screenwriter Rebeck with director Moritz von Stuelpnagel. Staged around a working kitchen in the Susan & Ronald Frankel Theater, the new comedy pits art against commerce by taking an up-close look at the restaurant world.
MCC will launch the new year with the world premiere of Johnson's play All the Natalie Portmans, directed by Kate Whoriskey (Sweat), in the Susan & Ronald Frankel Theater. When Keyonna, a 16-year-old on the brink of eviction, is too smart, "too gay," and too lonely to fit in, she escapes by writing to her muse in her most iconic roles. When they all start writing back to her, Keyonna is forced to face her own off-screen drama. Performances will begin February 6, 2020, ahead of a February 24 opening night.
In the spring, MCC will present Bioh's Nollywood Dreams. Set in the 1990s in Lagos, the new romantic comedy follows Ayamma, who dreams of stardom while working at her parent's travel agency. When she lands an audition for a new film by Nigeria's hottest director, she comes head-to-head with his former leading lady. Tensions flare just as sparks start flying between Ayamma and Wale, Nollywood's biggest heartthrob. Sugar in Our Wounds' Saheem Ali will direct the world premiere in the Newman Mills Theater beginning March 19. Opening night will be April 13.
Rounding out the season will be the world premiere of Thurber's drama Perry Street; playwright Thurber teams up with The Newsroom's Thomas Sadoski as director. In the funny and subversive new play, a West Village couple find joy in bringing aspiring artists into their home (with strings attached). When their daughter returns from college with a new girlfriend, the family is challenged by a series of unsettling evens in Thurber's exploration of class, sex, and family. Performances will begin June 4 ahead of a July 22 opening.
For more information visit MCCTheater.org.
