Theater News

Unexpected Joy to Make New York Premiere at York Theatre Company

”Side Show” scribe Bill Russell lends a book and lyrics to the new musical.

Bill Russell pens the book and lyrics for Unexpected Joy, a new musical set to make its New York premiere at the York Theatre Company.
Bill Russell pens the book and lyrics for Unexpected Joy, a new musical set to make its New York premiere at the York Theatre Company.
(© David Gordon)

The York Theatre Company will present the New York premiere of the new musical Unexpected Joy, featuring a book and lyrics by Bill Russell (Side Show) and music by Janet Hood (Elegies for Angels, Punks, and Raging Queens). Amy Anders Corcoran will direct, with music direction by Beth Falcone. Performances will begin April 24 in advance of a May 3 opening and will run through May 20 at the York Theatre Company at Saint Peter’s.

Unexpected Joy is the story of three generations of female singers, long-held family tensions, and a week together where change is in the air. In modern-day Cape Cod, Joy, a baby boomer and proud hippie, is holding a memorial concert for the other half of her popular musical duo, Jump & Joy. When her tightly wound conservative daughter and her sweet rebellious granddaughter arrive from Oklahoma, the sparks fly as one family seeks to find the common ground in their different values, dreams, and goals.

Unexpected Joy is presented in association with Jim Kierstead, a two-time Tony Award-winning producer of Kinky Boots and the 2013 Broadway revival of Pippin. The musical made its world premiere at Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theatre in 2016.

For tickets and more information, click here.