Jinkx Monsoon blooms Off-Broadway, Jason Gotay’s onstage skinny-dip & feral ‘Cats’ casting

Welcome to The Callboard, Queerty’s curtain-raising theater news, where we share the latest news from Broadway and beyond. From casting announcements and openings to viral moments with our favorite stars, here’s a front-row seat to all the drama happening onstage and off!

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Broadway is in full tilt with a whopping 14 shows opening in April, all sneaking in before the end-of-month cut-off date for Tony Awards consideration. But one thing’s for certain — Ariana DeBose will return for the third time to host the Tony Awards, scheduled for June 16. 

Last year, DeBose pulled off an unscripted opening due to the Writers Guild of America strike — but who needs words when you can kick your foot over your head, nail a double pirouette, and belt a show-tune medley?

What might the Oscar winner sing this year? Our wishlist includes “Where You Are” from Kiss of the Spider Woman, “All That Jazz” from Chicago, and “Independently Owned” from Shucked with Tony winner Alex Newell. And can get we get some queers in the writers’ room now that everybody’s back to work? How about Cole Escola and Justin Elizabeth Sayre join the party to turn a phrase or two?

Full tilt

The season is proving a powerhouse of musical revivals, with Sondheim fans old and new clamoring to see Jonathan Groff, Daniel Radcliffe, and Lindsay Mendez in Merrily We Roll Along. Meanwhile, the newly re-named August Wilson Theatre has undergone a creative transformation to become the Kit Kat Club in an immersive production of Cabaret starring Eddie Redmayne, reprising his Olivier Award-winning performance as The Emcee, and Gayle Rankin as Sally Bowles. But our senses were stimulated beyond a day at Fulton Street Fair at The Who’s Tommy, a revival of the theatrical adaptation of the concept album of the same name.

After witnessing a horrific event, Tommy Walker (portrayed at three different ages), retreats into a nearly catatonic state as his parents try everything in their power to “normalize” his behavior. A predatory uncle and brush with fame only complicate matters on his journey toward spiritual enlightenment.

Originally released as a double album in 1969 and first adapted for the stage in 1993, Tommy‘s conflated portrayal of disability lacks the nuance of contemporary offerings, like the short-lived How to Dance in Ohio, which ran for 72 performances earlier this season. Out dramaturg and disability advocate Sydney Zarlango perhaps says it best, comparing the work to Shakespeare’s Richard III, saying in a recent TikTok, “I like my rep messy and complicated and nuanced, and there’s a ton to recontextualize and discuss in this work.”

@disabledautisticlesbian Heavily researched scholarly input on disability in The Who’s Tommy from your local dramaturg 🙂 Have show accessibility questions? Head to my Instagram or website to find a full access review of the show #fyp #thewhostommy #tommybway #tommybroadway #nederlander #photosensitivity #accessibledesign #dramaturgy #review #broadway #disability #musicals #musicaltheatre #multihyphenate #accessibletheater #theateraccess #specialinterests #neurodivergent #nonbinary #disabledactor #sensoryprocessingdisorder #disabled #invisibledisability #actuallyautistic #trans #chronicpain #spoonie #chronicfatigue #migraines #disabledpride ♬ original sound – Sydney Zarlengo

Regardless of which camp you may fall in, Pete Townsend’s score remains electrifying, bolstered by Ali Louis Bourzgui’s Broadway debut as Tommy. Projection designs by Peter Nigrini converge with striking lighting design (Amanda Zieve) and a pulsating sound design (Gareth Owen) that vibrates throughout the Nederlander Theatre. But it’s Lorin Latarro’s choreography that literally catapults Tommy into a visual spectacle.

An onstage veteran of 14 Broadway shows, Latarro informs the piece with seismic weightlessness, defying gravity as Tommy — portrayed at three different ages — confronts a world intent on fixing or elevating him to celebrity status.

While aspects of the language in Tommy may feel stuck in the past, its themes are ever-present, proving that Broadway can entertain, enrage, and challenge all at once.
Nederlander Theatre, New York City. Open-ended run.

Off-Broadway buzz

“Somewhere that’s green” — New York City keeps calling and Jinkx Monsoon is answering. The drag diva and this year’s Queerties host returns to the stage in the hit revival of Little Shop of Horrors. Stepping into the role of Audrey, originated by the iconic Ellen Greene, Jinkx brings her own fiery flare to the performance, and audiences are eating it up just like Audrey II. But don’t choke on the price — premium tickets will cost you $250 each!
Westside Theatre, New York City. Jinkx Monsoon as Audrey through May 26.

@littleshopnyc Soooo, see you there?! #JinkxMonsoon is Audrey at #LittleShopNYC! #LittleShopNY #LittleShopofHorrors #AlanMenken #LittleShopofHorrors #musicals #broadway #bway #offbroadway #musical #bwaymusical #LittleShop ♬ original sound – Little Shop of Horrors

Below-the-belt bite — Pulitzer Prize-winning Michael R. Jackson (book and lyrics) and Anna K. Jacobs (book and music) turned to the 2007 comedy horror film Teeth for theatrical inspiration. Now premiering at Playwrights Horizons, the horror musical takes plenty of twists and turns as the lead character Dawn’s (Alyse Allan Louis in a bloody breakout performance) private parts take on a mind of their own, snapping away at the patriarchy. Spoiler alert: one of our favorite theater hotties, Jason Gotay, drops trousers for a frolic gone wrong.
Playwrights Horizon, New York City. Performances through April 28.

Related:

Jason Gotay on his ‘Wizard of Oz’ obsession, Eva Peron, and real-life Lost Boy romance

Before ‘Gossip Girl,’ Jason Gotay was on the bright lights of Broadway. He now returns to the stage in a new original Audible Theater concert.

Who’s invited to the Jelicle Ball? — A revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cats has theater queens pulling their claws out for tickets. Now titled Cats: “The Jellicle Ball,” the production reimagines the musical in New York City’s ballroom culture. Zhailon Levingston and Bill Rauch co-direct the musical, which promises “all new Ballroom and club beats, runway ready choreography, and an edgy eleganza makeover. ”

The just-announced cast includes Queerty Pride 50 honoree and Tony winner André De Shields as Old Deuteronomy, Antwayn Hopper (A Strange Loop) as Macavity, Sydney James Harcourt (Hamilton) as Rum Tum Tugger, and ballrooom icon and the founder and Queen Mother of the Haus of Maison Margiela, “Tempress” Chasity Moore, as Grizabella. The big question is, will “the memory live again”?
Perelman Performing Arts Center, New York City. Performances June 13 – July 14.

Hamming it up in LA

Queerty went to the opening night of Fat Ham in Los Angeles at the Geffen Playhouse, and the production is just as captivating as when it first appeared Off-Broadway, followed by its Broadway transfer. Inspired by Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright James Ijames reimagines the Danish prince as Juicy, described by Ijames as “thicc, Black, beautiful, lonely, and smart.”

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Expect a ghostly appearance of his recently deceased father, a smoking barbecue, and some other-worldly karaoke, and you’ve got a recipe for queer family drama. “Fat Ham doesn’t flinch from the harshness between intolerant parents and their queer children,” writes Charles McNulty for the Los Angeles Times. “But it is just as curious about the special bond between a gay son and his larger-than-life mother.”
Geffen Playhouse, Los Angeles. Performances through May 5.

Last word

Charles Busch, writer and star of dozens of queer-themed works, including Psycho Beach Party, Die Mommie Die, and Vampire Lesbians of Sodom, is back on stage in Ibsen’s Ghost. Queerty chatted with the icon, who offered these choice words about the legacy of drag:

“Women are fascinating and are allowed a flamboyance that society forbids men. And so, men who are in touch with the feminine within them are drawn to drag as a creative path. That ain’t never going away. The irony is that except for female pop stars, actresses today aren’t encouraged to be bigger than life, so people are drawn to drag stars to fill that niche.” 

Charles Busch

Correction: Jessie Buckley won an Oliver Award for her portrayal of Sally Bowles in the London revival of Cabaret, not Gayle Rankin, as previously stated.