Audra McDonald and Alan Cumming Lead Reading of Kiss of the Spider Woman

Tony winners Audra McDonald and Alan Cumming led the cast of a recent reading of the 1993 Tony Award-winning musical Kiss of the Spider Woman, according to published reports. Joined by The Bridges of Madison County star Steven Pasquale, the reading was directed by Tony-winner John Tiffany (Once).

Based on the novel by Manuel Puig, Kiss of the Spider Woman follows the relationship between a pair of Latin American prisoners, a gay window dresser named Molina (Cumming) and a Marxist revolutinary named Valentin (Pasquale), and Molina's fascination with a Hollywood diva named Aurora (McDonald), whose major role is a deadly one.

The musical features a Tony-winning score by John Kander and Fred Ebb, and a Tony-winning book by Terrence McNally. The original production ran on Broadway for 904 performances.

Tom Kirdahy, McNally's husband, oversaw the reading. Whether it is aiming for a Broadway revival remains to be seen. Kirdahy is the lead producer on the upcoming Kander-Ebb-McNally vehicle The Visit, which stars original Spider Woman Chita Rivera.