Confirming ongoing rumors and speculation, the Public Theater has announced that HAIR: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical which has been playing to sold out houses at The Delacorte Theater in Central Park since July 22 will indeed transfer to Broadway sometime in early 2009.
At this time there is no word on a theater, dates or who from the current cast will transfer to the new production will be co-produced by Elizabeth I. McCann and the Public Theater.
Directed by Diane Paulus with book and lyrics by James Rado and Gerome Ragni and music by Galt MacDermot, this critically acclaimed revival of the classic 1967 musical has extended three times and is now set to close on Sunday, September 14 in Central Park.
"HAIR has touched a nerve and captured the spirit of the times," said Public Theater Artistic Director
Oskar Eustis. "Nothing is more exciting than being in the Delacorte right now and seeing this 40-year-old musical reach audiences as if it was written yesterday. We are thrilled to announce our third and final extension."
HAIR was the show that, in 1967, officially opened The Public Theater's long-time home on Lafayette Street. HAIR has the distinction of being the first off-Broadway musical to transfer to Broadway. It moved to Broadway on April 29, 1968 and ran for 1,873 performances.
The cast for HAIR features
Ato Blankson-Wood (Tribe),
Steel Burkhardt (Tribe), Jackie Burns (Black Boys Trio/Tribe),
Allison Case (Crissy),
Lauren Elder (Tribe),
Allison Guinn (Tribe),
Christopher J. Hanke (Claude),
Anthony Hollock (Tribe),
Kaitlin Kiyan (Tribe),
Andrew Kober (Father/Margaret Mead),
Megan Lawrence (Mother),
Nicole Lewis (White Boys Trio / Tribe),
Caren Lyn Manuel (Sheila),
Patina Renea Miller (Dionne),
John Moauro (Tribe),
Darius Nichols (Hud),
Brandon Pearson (Tribe),
Megan Reinking (Black Boys Trio / Tribe),
Paris Remillard (Tribe),
Bryce Ryness (Woof),
Saycon Sengbloh (White Boys Trio / Tribe),
Maya Sharpe (Tribe),
Kacie Sheik (Jeanie),
Theo Stockman (Tribe),
Will Swenson (Berger), and
Tommar Wilson (Tribe).
HAIR features scenic design by
Scott Pask, costume design by
Michael McDonald, lighting design by
Michael Chybowski, sound design by
Acme Sound Partners, and choreography by
Karole Armitage.
Free tickets to Shakespeare in the Park are only distributed at The Delacorte Theater in Central Park or via a new virtual line opportunity at www.publictheater.org. The Public Theater is not distributing tickets downtown at 425 Lafayette Street due to ongoing construction on the exterior of the building.
To increase accessibility to Park shows, The Public Theater has launched a virtual line initiative this summer. While the majority of the tickets are still given out at the line in Central Park, a limited number of tickets are available each show day online. The virtual line allows people who are registered at The Public Theater website to log-on the day of a show (starting at midnight) to submit a request for up to two tickets. At 1 PM, they log-on to the theater website again to see if they have received tickets for that evening's performance. The tickets are held at the box office and a valid photo ID is required. The selection process is completely random and is not determined by what time of day a person submits a request for tickets.
Summer Supporter tickets for HAIR are available for a tax-deductible donation of $165. These reserved seats are only available for a limited time to ensure that the highest number of free seats will be available to distribute to the general public on the day of the show. Summer Supporter tickets help to underwrite production expenses. Supporter tickets are available at the Public Theater Box Office at 425 Lafayette Street; online at publictheater.org; or by calling (212) 967-7555.
Diane Paulus (Director) is the creator and director of The Donkey Show, which ran for six years off-Broadway and toured internationally. Her theater credits include Turandot: Rumble for the Ring (Bay Street Theatre); The Golden Mickeys (Disney Creative Entertainment); Best of Both Worlds (Music-Theatre Group and The
Women's Project); The Karaoke Show (
Jordan Roth Productions); the Obie Award-winning Pulitzer Prize finalist Running Man; Swimming With Watermelons (Project 400); Brutal Imagination; the Obie-winning Eli's Comin. Opera credits include Le Nozze Di Figaro, Turn of the Screw, Cosi Fan Tutte, Il Ritorno D'ulisse In Patria, L'Incoronazione di Poppea, and Orfeo (all Chicago Opera Theater; Orfeo was also presented at BAM). Recipient: Peter Ivers Visiting Artist Fellowship (Harvard); Directing Fellowship (the Drama League).
Performances of HAIR are Tuesday through Sunday at 8:00 p.m. Tickets are FREE and available on the day of the performance (two per person) at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park beginning at 1:00 p.m. or via a new virtual line opportunity at www.publictheater.org beginning at 12 AM the day of the show you want to attend. The closest entrances to the Delacorte are at 81st Street and Central Park West or 79th Street and Fifth Avenue.
For additional information about Shakespeare in the Park, call (212) 539-8750 or visit The Public Theater website at www.publictheater.org
THE PUBLIC THEATER (
Oskar Eustis, Artistic Director) was founded by
Joseph Papp in 1954 as the Shakespeare Workshop and is now one of the nation's preeminent cultural institutions, producing new plays, musicals, productions of Shakespeare, and other classics at its headquarters on Lafayette Street and at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park. The Public's mandate to create a theater for all New Yorkers continues to this day on stage and through its extensive outreach and education programs. Each year, over 250,000 people attend Public Theater-related productions and events at six downtown stages, including Joe's Pub, and Shakespeare in the Park. The Public has won 40 Tony Awards, 145 Obies, 39 Drama Desk Awards, 24
Lucille Lortel Awards and 4 Pulitzer Prizes.
Photo by Michal Daniel
