Photo credit: Stephen McKinley Henderson and Rosal Colon in 'Between Riverside and Crazy' at Second Stage Theatre in 2015. (Photo by Carol Rosegg)

Second Stage Theater announces upcoming Broadway season, including plays by Lynn Nottage and Stephen Adly Guirgis

The season includes three Broadway productions and two off-Broadway shows.

Sophie Thomas
Sophie Thomas

Details of the upcoming Broadway and off-Broadway seasons from Second Stage Theater have been confirmed. Five shows will be staged in total, including three at the Hayes Theater and two at the Kiser Theater respectively, with performances beginning in the fall.

News of Second Stage Theater's fall 2021 season comes shortly after the news that theatres can reopen at full capacity from September 14, as guided by Governor Cuomo.

"When I thought about what our reopening should look like, I realized I wanted and needed our audiences to feel joy and hope walking into our theaters once again" said Second Stage President and artistic director Carole Rothman. She continued to say "Healing, second chances, mindfulness, community and connection are all at the backbone of the stories we want to share.

The Hayes Theater will reopen this fall from the New York premiere of Lynn Nottage's Clyde's. Kate Whoriskey directs Nottage's latest work, following a truck stop sandwich shop owner give its employees a second chance at life after being incarcerated. Clyde's will begin previews on November 3, and officially open on November 22. Casting is to be announced.  

Originally scheduled to open in spring 2020, the revival of Richard Greenberg's Take Me Out will now run at the Hayes Theater in spring 2022. Scott Ellis directs the baseball drama, which sees Darren Lemming face criticism from fellow players after he comes out of the closet. Initial casting for the 2020 run included Jesse Williams, Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Patrick J. Adams, but casting for the 2022 rescheduled run is to be confirmed. Take Me Out begins performances on Mar. 9, 2022 ahead of an opening night on Apr. 4, 2022.

The Broadway premiere of Stephen Adly Gurgis' Pulitzer Prize-winning play Between Riverside and Crazy will open in fall 2022. Gurgis' new work follows an ex-cop and his paroled son as they try to keep their rent stabilized apartment. Austin Pendleton directs, with casting and performance dates to be confirmed.

At the Kiser Theater, performances will resume from fall 2021 with the world premiere of Rajiv Joseph's Letters To Suresh. May Adrales will direct the family drama, with characters longing for human connection through writing letters. Letters of Suresh is a secondary piece to Animals Out of Paper, which Second Stage Theater staged in 2008. Letters To Suresh begins performances on September 14, ahead of an official opening on October 4.

The season continues with the world premiere of J.C. Lee's To My Girls, directed by Stephen Brackett. Inspired by recent lockdown, a group of gay men escape to Palm Springs after the pandemic, but a year of evolving friendships while staying indoors replaces gloom with gossip in catastrophic ways. To My Girls is at the Kiser Theater from Mar. 22, 2022, ahead of an official opening on Apr. 14, 2022.   

Photo credit: Stephen McKinley Henderson and Rosal Colon in 'Between Riverside and Crazy' at Second Stage Theatre in 2015. (Photo by Carol Rosegg)

Article Updated: 1 July 2021

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