42 Balloons Musical, About Lawnchair Larry's Flight, to Have American Premiere in Chicago

The new British musical 42 Balloons will play a limited North American Run at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, May 24-June 29.

Based on the unbelievable true story of Larry Walters, who defied all odds to achieve his lifelong dream of soaring 16,000 feet above Los Angeles in a chair, the musical is written by Jack Godfrey.

The show is currently nominated for a WhatsOnStage Award for Best Regional Production following its full premiere at the Lowry in Salford in 2024, where it was called a “soaring success” by WhatsOnStage. Before that, it enjoyed a series of sold-out concerts in the West End.

The producing team includes Kevin McCollum (Oh, Mary!, Rent), Andy Barnes and Wendy Barnes (Six), and Sonia Friedman Productions (Merrily We Roll Along).

The musical, with book, music, and lyrics by Godfrey (Babies), is directed and dramaturged by Ellie Coote, with orchestrations, arrangements, and musical supervision by Joe Beighton, choreography by Alexzandra Sarmiento, scenic design by Milla Clarke, costume design by Natalie Pryce, video design by Andrzej Goulding, lighting design by Bruno Poet, and sound design by Paul Gatehouse.

Casting and further creative team will be revealed at a later date.