TOPDOG/UNDERDOG Launches STUDENT SEATS, Providing Fully Funded Tickets to Students

Suzan-Lori Parks' Pulitzer Prize-winning Topdog/Underdog has announced Topdog/Underdog STUDENT SEATS, a program that provides fully funded tickets to public school student groups, allowing them to see a world-class Broadway production of one of contemporary theater's greatest plays.

With a generous lead grant from the Ford Foundation, sponsorship from Goldman Sachs and City National Bank, and additional support from the NYC Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment, the Topdog/Underdog STUDENT SEATS initiative will provide 3,000 tickets throughout the 16-week limited engagement at the Golden Theatre free of charge to students.

"Experiencing theater is a crucial and enriching component to any education and we are thrilled to partner with Topdog/Underdog to bring New York City students to this extraordinary Broadway production," said Peter Avery, Director of Theater for the New York City Department of Education. "Suzan-Lori Parks' Pulitzer Prize-winning work is a powerful introductory piece for our public-school teens to a lifelong engagement with creative expression and the performing arts."

"We are proud to join the Department of Education to support the Topdog/Underdog Student Seats program, which aims to introduce Suzan-Lori Parks' Pulitzer Prize-winning play to NYC public high school students while expanding their perspectives and theater experiences," said the Commissioner of NYC Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment, Anne del Castillo. "The program is designed to ignite meaningful conversation through talkbacks and classroom discussions."

TOPDOG/UNDERDOG STUDENT SEATS will reach student groups from public high schools across the five boroughs, many of whom have been traditionally underrepresented in Broadway audiences. For some of these young people, Topdog/Underdog will be their first Broadway show. The initiative will also welcome student groups from NYC community colleges and not-for-profit educational opportunity programs. Additionally, some of the student groups will be able to engage with the show via talkbacks with members of the production.

For more information, educators can visit https://topdogunderdog.com/student-seats/

This 20th Anniversary Production is directed by Tony Award-winner Kenny Leon and stars Emmy Award-winner Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Watchmen, Candyman) and Tony Award-nominee Corey Hawkins (In the Heights, The Tragedy of Macbeth).

Suzan-Lori Parks' TOPDOG/UNDERDOG, a darkly comic fable of brotherly love and family identity, tells the story of two brothers, Lincoln (Hawkins) and Booth (Abdul-Mateen II), names given to them as a joke by their father. Haunted by the past and their obsession with the street con game, three-card monte, the brothers come to learn the true nature of their history.

Suzan-Lori Parks' Topdog/Underdog features scenic design by Arnulfo Maldonado, costume design by Dede Ayite, lighting design by Allen Lee Hughes, and sound design by Justin Ellington. Casting is by Calleri Jensen Davis. Kamra A. Jacobs is the Production Stage Manager. The production is being produced by David Stone, LaChanze, Rashad V. Chambers, Marc Platt, Debra Martin Chase and The Shubert Organization.