Theater News

Once on This Island to Return to Broadway; International Casting Search Announced

The production will look for its leading lady in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and other cities.

Michael Arden will direct a new Broadway revival of Once On This Island.
Michael Arden will direct a new Broadway revival of Once On This Island.
(© David Gordon)

Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty's musical Once on This Island will return to Broadway this fall, producers Ken Davenport and Hunter Arnold have announced. Directed by Tony nominee Michael Arden, the production will begin previews on Thursday, November 9 and officially open on Sunday, December 3, at a theater to be announced.

The creative team will feature Camille Brown (choreographer) and Dane Laffrey (scenic design), with new orchestrations by original orchestrator Michael Starobin and vocal design by AnnMarie Milazzo.

To find the leading lady to play Ti Moune, Telsey Company will host an international casting search that begins April 7 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. It will then travel to Detroit (April 14), Chicago (April 15), Los Angeles (April 27), New Orleans (April 29), Atlanta (April 30), and New York (May 2).

Once on This Island premiered at Playwright’s Horizons in May 1990. The Broadway production opened in October of that year and ran for 469 performances, garnering eight Tony nominations including Best Featured Actress (LaChanze), Best Original Score, Best Book of a Musical, and Best Musical. The 1994 West End production won the Olivier Award for Best New Musical.

The musical is inspired by the novel My Love, My Love by Rosa Guy. Arden's production "transforms the reality of post-storm Haiti into a fantastical world bursting with Caribbean rhythms and dance."

Click here for audition locations and requirements.