Porgy and Bess to Close in London on May 5; Broadway Transfer Planned

The London production of The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, directed by Trevor Nunn, will conclude its run after the Saturday, May 5 performance. The show will transfer to Broadway in the Spring 2008.

Porgy and Bess has music by George Gershwin, lyrics by DuBose Heyward & Ira Gershwin, and a book by Dubose Heyward, based on Porgy by DuBose and Dorothy Heyward. Nunn adapted and reworked the opera for this production, cutting it down from its original, roughly four-hour length for presentation as a two-and-a-half-hour musical. The score, which features such classics as “Summertime,” “I Got Plenty o’ Nuttin,” “Bess, You Is My Woman Now,” and “It Ain’t Necessarily So,” was adapted by Gareth Valentine; orchestrations are by Don Sebesky and musical direction by David White.

Nunn’s production opened at the Savoy Theatre on November 9. The current cast includes Clarke Peters as Porgy, Nicola Hughes as Bess, Cornell John as Crown, O-T Fagbenle as Sportin’ Life, Dawn Hope as Serena, and Melanie Marshall as Maria. The show features choreography by Jason Pennycooke, set design by John Gunter, costumes by Sue Blane, lighting by David Hersey, and sound design by Paul Groothuis.

For more information, visit www.porgyandbess.co.uk.