St. Louis' Jack Lane Notches His 7th Tony Nomination for Producing WATER FOR ELEPHANTS

For the second year in row and the seventh time in his career St. Louisan Jack Lane has been nominated for a Tony Award, this time for his work on WATER FOR ELEPHANTS.  In addition to his nomination for Best Musical, WATER FOR ELEPHANTS was nominated for Best Direction of a Musical, Book of a Musical, Choreography, Scenic Design, Costume Design, and Lighting Design.  

Lane is the winner of 3 Tony Awards. He has won as the producer of FUN HOME, THE HUMANS, and COMPANY, giving him Tonys in the categories of Best Musical, Best Play, and Best Revival of a Musical. His 3 other nominations were for his hit musicals & JULIET and THE PROM, and his play PETER AND THE STARCATCHER. St. Louis audiences will get the opportunity to see the first national tour of & JULIET when it plays The Fox Theater in the spring of 2025 as part of the Broadway Series. & JULIET is a bona fide box office hit and continues to fill seats well into its second year at The Stephen Sondheim Theatre. 

WATER FOR ELEPHANTS is the musical adaptation of the New York Times #1 Best Selling novel Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. The Musical has become a New York Times critic’s pick, and has been called ‘thrilling, dazzling, stunning, emotional, and gorgeously imaginative’ by critics. It tells the story a young man who jumps a train to nowhere and winds up working with a traveling circus.  

Paul Alexander Nolan, Isabelle McCalla, and Grant Gustin, PHOTO CREDIT: Matthew Murphy

Jack Lane spent the majority of his theatre career as the Executive Producer and one of the founding members of STAGES St. Louis. He created a thriving theatre company that staged Broadway caliber entertainment in a small venue in Kirkwood. STAGES St. Louis’ first home, The Robert G. Reim Theatre in Kirkwood, was the size of an off-Broadway house with a seating capacity of just under 400. But Lane, and his partner, Michael Hamilton outgrew the Reim, and they needed a larger Broadway type theater. Initially the plan was to relocate to Chesterfield, Missouri, but the city of Kirkwood stepped up and built the Kirkwood Performing Arts Center (KPAC.)  The KPAC houses The Ross Family Theatre, a full-size Broadway house with a 530-seat auditorium, and a smaller black box venue that seats 375. 

It was the addition of the KPAC that allowed Lane and the producers at STAGES St. Louis to bring the city its first Pre-Broadway tryout of THE KARATE KID: The Musical. THE KARATE KID was a rousing success. Lane helped program STAGES third season at the KPAC with the record setting production of CLUE, Disney’s AIDA, and MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET, before fully retiring from STAGES to focus on producing on Broadway and in London’s West End.  

He was drawn to WATER FOR ELEPHANTS after seeing the workshop and video of the Alliance Theater tryout last year. Lane said, “I was very taken by the sheer ingenuity and creativity as I watched the collaboration between Jessica Stone (the director), Rick Elice (the book writer), and the songwriters as they translated this story for the stage.” He continued, “This is a story everyone can relate to about finding purpose in life, but it also brings elements to the stage that you have never seen before.” Lane talked about how the cast includes circus performers who are seamlessly blended with Broadway performers. It is the reason that the production can include the daring acrobatic aerial circus acts. The Cast of WATER FOR ELEPHANTS, PHOTO CREDIT: Matthew Murphy

According to Lane, audiences are enjoying WATER FOR ELEPHANTS because people love the circus, and the story has a strong emotional pull. Lane says, “The audience is being swept away by the romance and the jaw dropping circus acts.” He said, “you see things on stage that no one in the audience can do. It is spectacle and unlike anything that has ever been on a Broadway stage.”   

Lane’s also working on his next project, the new musical THE QUEEN OF VERSAILLES, starring Kristin Chenoweth and F. Murray Abraham, with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, and directed by Michael Arden. The powerhouse Tony winning team will premiere the show at Boston’s Emerson Colonial Theatre beginning on July 16, 2024. Just today the producers announced a one-week extension of this pre-Broadway run through August 25, 2024. Plans are to move this production to Broadway in 2025. In addition to QUEEN OF VERSAILLES, Lane mentioned another big Broadway project he is behind that he says will take Broadway by storm this fall, and an Off-Broadway production slated for 2025. With a little good fortune, he could potentially have five productions running simultaneously in New York City.  

Lane has a knack for finding projects that are both critically acclaimed and commercially successful. He says that when he has an emotional connection to a piece, he knows it will be a hit. His track record producing quality shows that get the attention of the Tony voters substantiates his skill at picking winning projects. Jack Lane is now enjoying success as an international theatre producer, and St. Louis continues to enjoy the STAGES legacy he and Michael Hamilton have left behind.  

WATER FOR ELEPHANTS PHOTO CREDIT: Matthew Murphy

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