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The Harder They Come
The Harder They Come Tickets

The Harder They Come Tickets

New York
16 Feb 2023 - 9 Apr 2023
Groove to the sound of Jamaica at this reggae musical based on the same-named film.
81
Great
78 Reviews on Show-Score

The Harder They Come Information

Pulitzer Prize winner Suzan-Lori Parks adapts the 1972 Jamaican film The Harder They Come into a thrilling new musical. Get The Harder They Come tickets on New York Theatre Guide.

The Harder They Come musical centers on Ivan, an aspiring music star looking to break into the Jamaican scene. Shortly after arriving in Kingston, he gets a record deal and a new romance, but things don't stay perfect for long. He quickly sees the dark underside of the industry and how it's rigged, and his discoveries threaten his life and even Jamaican society.

The stage musical features the Grammy Award-winning songs of Jimmy Cliff, who starred as Ivan in The Harder They Come film. These songs include ones he performed in the film, such as the title track and "You Can Get It If You Really Want." Parks's script is adapted from the original screenplay by Trevor Rhone and Perry Henzell, who also produced and directed the movie.

Tony Taccone directs The Harder They Come off Broadway; he is the former artistic director of Eureka Theatre and Berkeley Repertory Theatre. While at the former, he commissioned Tony Kushner to write Angels in America, which became one of the most celebrated plays of the 20th century. Co-directing is Sergio Trujillo, a Broadway choreographer best known for his Tony-nominated work on Ain't Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations.

The Harder They Come musical celebrates the movie's 50th anniversary.

Get tickets to The Harder They Come in New York.

Photo credit: Suzan-Lori Parks by Stephanie Diani

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Opening date

February 16th, 2023

Closing date

April 9th, 2023

Categories

Musical, Opening Soon

Venue

Public Theater

Cast and creative

By: Suzan-Lori Parks, adapted from the film produced and directed by Perry Henzell and co-written with Trevor Rhone
Songs by: Jimmy Cliff
Director: Tony Taccone and Sergio Trujillo
Choreography: Edgar Godineaux
Cast list: Jeannette Bayardelle, Shawn Bowers, Andrew Clarke, Jamal Christopher Douglas, Dana Marie Ingraham, Dominique Johnson, Chelsea-Ann Jones, Dudney Joseph Jr, Dwight Xaveir Leslie, Morgan McGhee, Meecah, Jacob Ming-Trent, Alysha Morgan, Ken Robinson, Housso Semon
Other info: Music supervision by Kenny Seymour

Our review

The Harder They Come is the new musical adaptation of the critically acclaimed 1972 film of the same name. The world premiere tuner at The Public Theater features a book by Suzan-Lori Parks and songs by Jimmy Cliff, including reggae hits such as “You Can Get It If You Really Want” and “Many Rivers to Cross,” plus new songs by Parks. Scenic designers Clint Ramos and Diggle transform the Public’s Newman Theater space into a Jamaican shanty town with colorful tin structures covered in palm fronds,...

Latest The Harder They Come News & Features

Here they come! The complete Off-Broadway cast for the new musical The Harder They Come has been set. The Public Theater hosts the world-premiere production, which runs from February 16 to March 26, opening on March 15. Natey Jones will play the lead role of Ivan in his American stage debut alongside Tony Award nominee Jeannette Bayardelle as Daisy, J. Bernard Calloway as Preacher, Andrew Clarke as Lyle, Dominique Johnson as Jose, Dudney Joseph Jr. as Ray, Meecah as Elsa, Jacob Ming-Trent as...

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