From the rockin' dance halls of Memphis, Tennessee comes this hot and bothered new Broadway musical with heart, soul and energy to burn. Set in the turbulent south in the 1950s, it is the story of Huey Calhoun, a white radio DJ whose love of good music transcends race lines and airwaves. Get ready to experience all the exuberance and the emotion... the beauty and the controversy... of a wondrous, defining time in our history. You're tuning in to Memphis, so turn up that dial!
MEMPHIS features a brand new score with music by Bon Jovi's founding member/keyboardist David Bryan and lyrics by Bryan and Joe DiPietro (I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change), who also pens the musical's book. Bryan and DiPietro also collaborated on the current award-winning off-Broadway hit, The Toxic Avenger. MEMPHIS is based on a concept by the late George W. George (producer of the Tony nominated Bedroom Farce and the film My Dinner With Andre), with direction by Tony nominee Christopher Ashley (Xanadu) and choreography by Sergio Trujillo (Jersey Boys).
The remarkably rich and raucous character-driven songs, by Bon Jovi cofounder David Bryan, lovingly capture the insinuating, earthy authenticity of rhythm and blues, gospel and early rock and roll without sounding derivative. The moody and inventive production has been put together with down-and-dirty elegance by director Christopher Ashley, choreographer Sergio Trujillo, set designer David Gallo and costume designer Paul Tazewell, who let the musical and dramatic and pop-up scenic discoveries peel off one another at a pace breathless and disciplined, original and authentic. When a singer lets loose - and, eventually, they all do - the vocal pyrotechnics come from deep within the storytelling.
'Memphis' isn't out to revolutionize musical theater, but its embrace of old-fashioned pleasures is immensely gratifying. Nowhere is this approach more obvious than in the emotionally charged 'Colored Woman.' Alone in the spotlight, Glover simultaneously lifts up the show and stops it dead in its tracks. Of such thrills, Broadway is made.
2004 | Regional (US) |
Regional Production Regional (US) |
2009 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
2011 | US Tour |
National Tour US Tour |
2014 | West End |
West End Premiere Production West End |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2010 | BroadwayWorld Awards | Best Book of a Musical | Joe DiPietro |
2010 | BroadwayWorld Awards | Best Original Score | David Bryan |
2010 | BroadwayWorld Awards | Best Original Score | Joe DiPietro |
2010 | BroadwayWorld Awards | Best Original Score | David Bryan |
2010 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Choreography | Sergio Trujillo |
2010 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Musical | Memphis |
2010 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Musical | Chad Kimball |
2010 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Actress in a Musical | Montego Glover |
2010 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Choreography | Sergio Trujillo |
2010 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Director of a Musical | Christopher Ashley |
2010 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical | Cass Morgan |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Book of a Musical | Joe DiPietro |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Costume Design of a Musical | Paul Tazewell |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Direction of a Musical | Christopher Ashley |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | ShadowCatcher Entertainment/Vijay and Sita Vashee |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Remmel T. Dickinson/Memphis Orpheum Group |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Loraine Boyle/Chase Mishkin |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Bob Bartner/Scott and Kaylin Union |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Dan Frishwasser |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Patty Baker |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Jocko Productions |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Broadway Across America |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Linda and Bill Potter |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Lauren Doll |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Junkyard Dog Productions |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Marleen and Kenny Alhadeff |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Latitude Link |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Jim and Susan Blair |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Demos Bizar Entertainment |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Land Line Productions |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Eric and Marsi Gardiner |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Barbara and Buddy Freitag |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Apples and Oranges Productions |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Dave Copley |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Dancap Productions, Inc. |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Alex and Katya Lukianov |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Tony Ponturo |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | 2 Guys Productions |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Richard Winkler |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Orchestrations | Daryl Waters |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Orchestrations | David Bryan |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre | David Bryan |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre | Joe DiPietro |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre | David Bryan |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical | Chad Kimball |
2010 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical | Montego Glover |
2009 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Musical | Chad Kimball |
2009 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Actress in a Musical (tie) | Montego Glover |
2009 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Book of a Musical | Joe DiPietro |
2009 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Music | David Bryan |
2009 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Orchestrations | David Bryan |
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