What We Know So Far About THE GREAT GATSBY Musical

The roaring 20s are back again! As BroadwayWorld reported earlier this week, the musical adaptation of The Great Gatsby is headed to Broadway later this year. What do we know so far...?

The musical is based on F. Scott Fitzgerald’s timeless, seminal novel on the same name. The book was released in 1925 and is widely considered to be a literary masterpiece.The book has sold over 30 million copies worldwide and continues to sell over 500,000 per year. 

The novel has been adapted many times for both the stage and big screen- most recently by Baz Luhrmann in 2013, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Tony McGuire and Carey Mulligan.

This musical version of The Great Gatsby had its pre-Broadway engagement at the Paper Mill Playhouse in 2023, starring Jeremy Jordan and Eva Noblezada. The world premiere engagement of The Great Gatsby was the highest grossing show in Paper Mill Playhouse history. The production, which ran October 12–November 12, 2023, also broke the theater’s all-time record for ticket sales in a single day, and sold out the entire run before its very first performance. 

Check out what the critics had to say!

The show features music & lyrics by Tony Award nominees Nathan Tysen (Paradise Square) & Jason Howland (Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, Little Women), a book by Jonathan Larson Grant winner Kait Kerrigan (The Mad Ones), and is staged by award-winning director Marc Bruni (Beautiful: The Carole King Musical) and choreographer Dominique Kelley (“Mariah’s Magical Christmas Special”, “Dancing with the Stars”). 

NOTE: This version is not to be confused with Gatsby- a new musical by Florence Welch and Thomas Bartlett which is set to premiere at the American Repertory Theater in May 2024.

The Paper Mill Playhouse cast included: Jordan and Noblezada as Gatsby and Daisy, with Sara Chase as Myrtle Wilson, Stanley W. Mathis as Meyer Wolfsheim, Samantha Pauly as Jordan Baker, Noah J. Ricketts as Nick Carraway, Paul Whitty as George Wilson and John Zdrojeski as Tom Buchanan. The full Broadway cast has not yet been announced.

Transporting audiences to the lavish Roaring Twenties, the story follows eccentric and mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby, who will stop at nothing in the pursuit of the lost love of his youth, Daisy Buchanan. Through its fascinatingly nuanced characters, driven by complex inner lives erupting with extravagance and longing – this epic tale has always been destined to sing. Now, it finally comes to life on the greatest American stage, through an electrifying jazz and pop-infused score, and a grand production befitting the 21st century.
 
The Broadway premiere of The Great Gatsby will feature scenic & projection design by Paul Tate de Poo III (Spamalot, Tommy at The Kennedy Center), costume design by Tony Award winner Linda Cho (Anastasia, A Gentleman’s Guide...), lighting design by Cory Pattak (Spamalot), sound design by Tony Award winner Brian Ronan (Beautiful, The Book of Mormon), hair & wig design by Drama Desk Award winner Charles G. LaPointe (The Cher Show, Spongebob Squarepants) & Rachael Geier. Arrangements are by Jason Howland, Orchestrations are by Jason Howland and Kim Scharnberg (Jekyll & Hyde), the Music Director is Daniel Edmonds (Strictly Ballroom), and the music producer is Grammy Award winner Billy Jay Stein for Strike Audio (Beautiful – cast album). Casting is by C12 Casting (Gutenberg, & Juliet) and the Production Stage Manager is Brian Bogin (The Great Comet, Mike Birbiglia: The Old Man & The Pool). Mark Shacket (Funny Girl, Slave Play) of Foresight Theatrical serves as Executive Producer.