The cast of the New York premiere includes Marckus Blair, Sara Esty, Dion Simmons Grier (Sister Act), Danielle Herbert (After Midnight), Kayla Jenerson, Cory Lingner (Carousel), and Mike Schwitter (Pippin). Understudies are Rachel Fairbanks (Cinderella tour) and Drew Tanabe.
Conceived by Susan H. Schulman, Michael Lichtefeld, and Lawrence Yurman and developed with Hoagy Carmichael’s son, Hoagy Bix Carmichael, the new musical tells the story of six friends and the one man who brought them all together. The seven friends weave a story of camaraderie and shifting relationships through four decades in America.
At the helm of the musical journey through Hoagy Carmichael’s classic songs are director Schulman and choreographer Lichtefeld, who together oversaw the Broadway productions of Little Women, The Sound of Music, The Secret Garden, and the Circle in the Square/York production of Sweeney Todd. The music supervisor and arranger is Lawrence Yurman.
The musical also has scenic design by James Morgan and Vincent Gunn, costume design by Alex Allison, projection design by Brad Peterson, lighting design by Jason Kantrowitz, and sound design by Julian Evans.
The production stage manager is Melanie Morgan, and the casting director is Michael Cassara. Performances will continue Off-Broadway through December 31.
The Fred Ebb Award recognizes excellence in musical theatre songwriting, by a songwriter or songwriting team that has not yet achieved significant commercial success.