Allegiance sets closing date of 14 February 2016

The new musical Allegiance, starring George Takei and Lea Salonga, will play its final performance on the Great White Way on 14 February 2016. It was previously booking through to 25 September 2016.

The producers released the following statement:

"Bringing Allegiance to Broadway was not only a labor of love for our entire creative team and this company of extraordinary artists, but it was also a work with deep commitment to social relevance and impact. We are so proud to have brought George Takei's very personal family history to the stage and - in the process - to have surfaced a chapter of history that was painfully unknown to so many. By its last performance Allegiance will have been seen on Broadway by approximately 120,000 people, a number that eerily echoes the number of Japanese Americans who were directly impacted by the events that inspired our musical, and whose rights were trampled in the name of pure fear and intolerance. We look forward to continuing to share this essential story — more relevant than ever, given today's headlines — and this moving score with theatergoers across the country and around the world for many years to come. Audiences who have experienced Allegiance on Broadway have left the theater transformed, uplifted, enlightened, inspired, informed, and entertained. We remain committed to finding more ways in which the true impact of Allegiance will continue."

Featuring a book by Marc Acito, with music and lyrics by Jay Kuo, Allegiance is directed by Olivier Award nominee Stafford Arima and produced by Lorenzo Thione and Andrew Treagus.

Synopsis: "Allegiance is inspired by George Takei's true childhood experiences. Traversing the lush California heartland, the windswept prairies of Wyoming and the battlefields of war-torn Europe, Allegiance tells the epic multi-generational tale of deep family loyalty, romance, humor, optimism and unparalleled heroism in the face of fear and prejudice against Japanese-Americans during World War II and beyond."

George Takei is making his Broadway debut at 75 years old, alongside Tony Award-winner Lea Salonga and Telly Leung who are all reprising their roles from the world premiere production, which was staged at San Diego's The Old Globe in 2012.

They are joined by Katie Rose Clarke (Hannah Campbell), Michael K. Lee (Frankie Suzuki), Christopheren Nomura (Tatsuo Kimura), and Greg Watanabe (Mike Masaoka). The ensemble features Aaron J. Albano, Belinda Allyn, Marcus Choi, Janelle Dote, Dan Horn, Owen Johnston, Darren Lee, Manna Nichols, Autumn Ogawa, Rumi Oyama, Momoko Sugai, Cary Tedder, Elena Wang , Scott Watanabe and Scott Wise.

The creative team behind Allegiance features choreography by Andrew Palermo, scenic design by Donyale Werle, costume design by Alejo Vietti, lighting design by Howell Binkley, and sound design by Kai Harada.

A Broadway Cast Recording will be released on 5 February 2016 and distributed by Broadway Records / Yellow Sound.

- by Tom Millward