Broadway's Airline Highway Celebrates a New Orleans-Style Opening Night

Airline Highway, the new Broadway play by Lisa D'Amour, celebrated its opening night at Manhattan Theatre Club's Samuel J. Friedman Theatre on April 23. The dark comedy, directed by Joe Mantello, began performances April 1 after a run at Steppenwolf Theatre in late 2014.

Airline Highway follows a ragtag group of strippers, hustlers, and philosophers who have gathered at a once-glamorous New Orleans motel to celebrate the life of Miss Ruby, an iconic burlesque performer who has requested a pre-mortem funeral. The show is described as an "ode to the outcasts that make life a little more interesting."

The Broadway cast includes Tony winner Julie White, Carolyn Braver, K. Todd Freeman, Scott Jaeck, Ken Marks, Caroline Neff, Tim Edward Rhoze, Judith Roberts, and Joe Tippett, alongside an ensemble made up of Todd d'Amour, Shannon Eagen, Venida Evans, Joe Forbrich, Leslie Hendrix, Sekou Laaidlow, and Toni Martin. The Steppenwolf production played an extended Chicago run in late 2014 and early 2015.

Before the show, New Orleans-style brass band Sammy Miller and the Congregation led the cast in a parade from Bourbon Street Restaurant to their Broadway home. Check out TheaterMania's photos in the gallery below.

For tickets to the Broadway production of Airline Highway, click here.