Sasson Gabay And Chilina Kennedy To Lead National Tour of THE BAND'S VISIT

It was announced today that award-winning Israeli film actor Sasson Gabay will reprise the role of "Tewfiq" in the upcoming North American tour of the 10-time Tony Award-winning Best Musical, THE BAND'S VISIT, the role he created in the 2007 film of the same name and most recently played on Broadway.

Joining him for the tour is critically acclaimed 'Beautiful' actress Chilina Kennedy in the role of "Dina", a role which won a Tony Award for original star Katrina Lenk in 2018.

The Israeli star of stage, TV and screen, Sasson Gabay recently received the Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to Israeli cinema at the Israeli Film Festival. Gabay is one of the most respected and outstanding actors in Israeli film with work spanning five decades, including some of Israel's most popular and critically-acclaimed films as well as international hits such as Rambo III, Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem, Delta Force One: The Lost Patrol and The Band's Visit (Israel's top-grossing film in the US).

Chilina Kennedy is known for her role as "Carole King" in Beautiful: The Carole King Musical on Broadway. She has starred as "Mary Magdalene" in Des McAnuff's Broadway revival of Jesus Christ Superstar and headlined many productions around the world including, the first national tour of Mamma Mia!, Atlantic Theater Company's This Ain't No Disco and three seasons at the Stratford Festival, including "Maria" in Gary Griffin's West Side Story.

"We are honored to have Sasson Gabay and Chilina Kennedy headline our national tour.Very rarely in the history of Broadway has an actor originated a role on film, played it on Broadway and then continued with the tour. This speaks to Sasson's artistry and his commitment to this particular work." says producer Orin Wolf. "It is also fitting that he will be seen opposite Chilina Kennedy whose world class talent is already known to Broadway fans all over the world. Seeing these two artists together promises to be one of the great theatrical events of the season. How exciting that this has been assembled exclusively for Broadway audiences nationwide who hunger for world class entertainment."

The cast will also include Jennifer Apple as "Anna," Mike Cefalo as "Telephone Guy," Adam Gabay as "Papi," Marc Ginsburg as "Sammy," Kendal Hartse as "Iris," Joe Joseph as "Haled," Sara Kapner as "Julia," Pomme Koch as "Itzik," Ronnie Malley as "Camal," James Rana as "Simon," Or Schraiber as "Zelger," and David Studwell as "Avrum," along with Danny Burgos, Loren Lester, Nick Sacks, Hannah Shankman and Bligh Voth.

Sasson Gabay and Adam Gabay are appearing with the support of Actors' Equity Association.

"The producers, casting directors, and creative team have spent many months carefully building this cast for our national tour. We are excited and proud to have these wonderful actors take the story of THE BAND'S VISIT out into the world," says director David Cromer.

The tour will launch at the Providence Performing Arts Center on June 25, 2019 and continue on to play Washington, DC beginning on July 9, 2019. THE BAND'S VISIT will play over 32 cities in its first season.