Matthew Morrison to leave Neverland on 24 January 2016

Emmy and Tony nominee and "Glee" star Matthew Morrison will play his final performance as J.M. Barrie in the Broadway premiere production of Finding Neverland at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on 24 January 2016.

As previously reported, Emmy Award winner and Tony nominee Kelsey Grammer will return to Finding Neverland before Morrison's departure and play a limited seven-week engagement from 19 January to 28 February 2016 as Charles Frohman/Captain Hook.

The principal cast currently includes Matthew Morrison (J.M. Barrie), Laura Michelle Kelly (Sylvia Llewelyn Davis), Terrence Mann (Charles Frohman), Carolee Carmello (Madame du Maurier), Teal Wicks (Mary Barrie), Alex Dreier, Aidan Gemme, Jackson Demott Hill, Noah Hinsdale, Sawyer Nunes, Christopher Paul Richards, and Hayden Signoretti (The Llewelyn Davis Boys).

Finding Neverland, directed by Diane Paulus, began previews on 15 March 2015 at Broadway's Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, before an official opening on 15 April, and is currently booking through to 3 July 2016.

Finding Neverland features a book by Olivier Award nominee James Graham, with music and lyrics by Grammy Award winner Elliot Kennedy and Gary Barlow, UK songwriter and member of popgroup 'Take That.'

Synopsis: "When a playwright meets a widow and her four boys in Kensington Gardens, he embarks on a friendship that inspires one of the most beloved stories of all time. Based on the Miramax film written by David Magee, Finding Neverland follows the real-life relationship between the Llewelyn Davies family and James Matthew Barrie as he writes the revolutionary 1904 play Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up. This new musical explores the power of imagination to open up new worlds, and the pressures put upon those worlds by the prospect of growing up."

The creative team behind Finding Neverland features choreography by Mia Michaels, scenic design by Tony Award winner Scott Pask, lighting by Phillip S. Rosenberg, costumes by Suttirat Larlarb, and sound design by Tony nominee Jonathan Deans.

The pre-Broadway engagement of Finding Neverland, which starred Jeremy Jordan as J.M. Barrie, concluded on 28 September 2014, after 75 sold-out performances at the American Repertory Theater at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It was the highest attended and highest grossing production in A.R.T.'s 34-year history.

Matthew Morrison earned a Tony nomination in 2005 for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for his performance as Fabrizio Naccarelli in 'The Light in the Piazza'. His other Broadway credits include 'South Pacific,' 'A Naked Girl on the Appian Way,' 'Hairspray,' 'The Rocky Horror Show,' and 'Footloose'. He also earned an Emmy and two Golden Globe nominations for his recurring TV role as Will Schuester on "Glee". Other screen credits include "What to Expect When You're Expecting," "Music and Lyrics," and "As the World Turns."

Kelsey Grammer earned his Tony nomination for Best Actor in a Musical in 2010 for his performance as Georges in the revival of 'La Cage aux Folles'. His other Broadway credits include 'Othello' in 1982 and 'Macbeth' both in 1981 and again in 2000. He is perhaps best known for his role as radio psychiatrist Dr. Frasier Crane in 'Frasier,' for which he has won 4 Emmy Awards and 2 Golden Globes. His many screen credits include "Boss," "The Expendables 3," "Fame," "X-Men: The Last Stand," "Toy Story 2," "The Simpsons," and "Cheers."

- by Tom Millward