Photos: Inside Opening Night of PAY THE WRITER At Pershing Square Signature Center

Craig Bierko, Bebe Neuwirth, Maryann Plunkett, Jay O. Sanders, Maulik Pancholy, Noah Ricketts, Sharon Brown, Seth Rudetsky, Erik Bottcher, Julian Elijah Martinez, Kevyn Morrow, and Frank Wood among others, attended Opening Night of Pay the Writer on August 21, 2023. See photos from the opening night celebration!

The world premiere of a new comedy-drama by New York Times Bestselling Author Tawni O’Dell (Back Roads) stars Ron Canada (Network, Wedding Crashers, “The West Wing”), Emmy and Golden Globe nominee Marcia Cross (“Desperate Housewives,” “Melrose Place”), and Bryan Batt (“Mad Men,” 12 Years a Slave, Jeffrey). Pay the Writer is playing Off-Broadway at The Alice Griffin Jewel Box Theater at The Pershing Square Signature Center (480 West 42nd Street). The limited engagement is directed by Karen Carpenter (Love, Loss, and What I Wore).

Tickets are available for purchase at https://bit.ly/PayTheWriterTickets

The production also features Steven Hauck (Broadway: The Velocity of Autumn, Irena’s Vow) as Jean Luc, Miles G. Jackson (Broadway: Chicken & Biscuits, TV: “Hunters,” “The Last O.G.”) as Young Bruston/Taz, Garrett Turner (Broadway: TINA — The Tina Turner Musical, Thoughts of a Colored Man) as Young Cyrus, Danielle J. Summons (Off-Broadway: Baby) as Gigi, and Stephen Payne (Broadway: Of Mice And Men, Superior Donuts, August: Osage County) as Homeless Man.

Focusing on the complicated relationship between a legendary literary agent and his best friend-turned-most-successful client, Pay the Writer explores how an artist’s life is controlled by their calling and talent.

Bruston Fischer (Bryan Batt) is a young gay man suffering from social persecution while trying to make it in publishing when he first meets Cyrus Holt (Ron Canada) some 40 years earlier. Cyrus is a gifted Black writer trying to get his talent noticed in a world that wants to ignore his existence. Through their unique friendship, the pair find literary success and the most stable relationship either will ever have. Yet, when talent, business, and love intertwine, missteps occur and, inevitably, regrets often follow. Triumph and loss become blurred as we sort through the challenges of the human condition. Pay The Writer is a heartrending and funny exploration of personal and artistic legacy while navigating life’s final chapter.

Scenic design is by Tony Award winner David Gallo (The Drowsy Chaperone, Jitney, Radio Golf), costume design is by Tony Award nominee David C. Woolard (The Rocky Horror Show, The Who’s Tommy), lighting design is by Tony Award winner Christopher Akerlind (Indecent, Light in the Piazza), and sound design and production management are by Bill Toles (Off-Broadway’s The Rat Trap, Sowa’s Red Gravy). Props are by Yuki Nakamura (The Producers China Tour, Off-Broadway’s La Bohème, A Small Oak Tree Runs Red). Casting is by Robin Carus. General management is by Aaron Grant Theatrical.

Pay the Writer is produced by Tony Award-nominated producers Alexander “Sandy” Marshall (Hangmen, American Buffalo) and Mitchell Maxwell (Dinner with Friends, Jeffrey, Damn Yankees) along with Brenda Braxton (Tony nominee, Smokey Joe's Cafe), Weird Sisters Productions (Pictures From Home),  MarMaxMedia, Big Dawg Productions, Kati Meister (A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, for colored girls…), Robin Carus and Giles Cole.

Photo Credit: Tricia Baron