Learn All About THE THANKSGIVING PLAY's Unconventional Journey to Broadway

The Thanksgiving Play has made its way to the Broadway stage! Second Stage Theater's production of Larissa FastHorse's play, The Thanksgiving Play, directed by Tony Award-winner Rachel Chavkin, is currently in previews and will officially open today, April 20th at Second Stage's Hayes Theater.

The production stars Emmy Award-nominee D'Arcy Carden, two-time Tony Award-winner Katie Finneran, Scott Foley, and two-time Emmy Award-nominee Chris Sullivan.

The Thanksgiving Play tells the story of a troupe of really, really well-meaning theater artists who attempt to put on a culturally sensitive Thanksgiving school pageant, and things get messy.

The play had an unconventional trajectory, with several regional productions, readings, and workshops, as well as a unique online production during the COVID-19 pandemic. Learn about The Thanksgiving Play and its journey to Broadway below!

U.C. Berkeley

After Larissa FastHorse wrote the play in the Irish countryside, it came to the stage for the first time at U.C. Berkeley in 2015 for a reading and a workshop. This reading was directed by Paige Johnson and the cast was made up of students of the New Play Practicum.

Portland, OR

Following this first premiere reading, The Thanksgiving Play moved to Portland, Oregon at the Artists Repertory Theatre for a reading performed for the staff of the theatre.

Baltimore, MD

After the run in Portland, the play headed to Baltimore to be performed as part of the fall Play Lab during Center Stage's 2016/17 season. This iteration was directed by Gavin Witt.

Back to Portland

The play had its official world premiere at Artists Repertory Theatre as part of their 2017/2018 season.

Additional Runs

Another workshop was held in early 2017 at The Playwrights' Center in Minneapolis. The cast was made up on Lilly Mullaney, Peter Christian Hansen, Jennifer Blagen, and Pegeen Lamb.

A full production also took place in November 2019, at The Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles, California. Directed by Michael John Garcés, the cast included Noah Bean, Alexandra Henrikson, Jeff Marlow, and Samantha Sloyan.

Off-Broadway

The Thanksgiving Play finally made its off-Broadway debut in 2018. The play was directed by Moritz von Stuelpnagel, at Playwrights Horizons.

Performances ran October 12 - November 25 in the Peter Jay Sharp Theater. The cast included Jennifer Bareilles as Logan, Jeffrey Bean as Caden, Greg Keller as Jaxton, and Margo Seibert as Alicia.

Zoom Production

An online production of The Thanksgiving Play took place, starring Bobby Cannavale, Keanu Reeves, Heidi Schreck and Alia Shawkat and directed by Leigh Silverman in March 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic. The text was updated to reflect the new context, with the characters rehearsing the titular play over Zoom. The performance included interstitials directed, designed, and performed by Ty Defoe.

Pittsburgh, PA

An additional regional production took place in Pittsburgh in November 2021, at the Arcade Comedy Theater. The cast included Rachael Pfennigwerth as Logan, Matt Zierden as Jaxton, Evelyn Hernandez as Alicia, and Matt Henderson as Caden.

The limited run took place from November 19 - 21, and December 2 - 5.