Andrew Lloyd Webber's 'Bad Cinderella' to open on Broadway

The musical will play the Imperial Theatre.

The pumpkin coach is pulling into New York! Andrew Lloyd Webber's Bad Cinderella musical, which puts a new spin on the classic fairytale, is set to open on Broadway in 2023. Performances begin at the Imperial Theatre on February 17 ahead of a March 23 opening night.

Webber, known for musicals like The Phantom of the Opera, Cats, and Jesus Christ Superstar, wrote the music for Cinderella, which marks his 26th Broadway production. He is an EGOT honoree, having won at least one Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Award; he has a total of seven Tonys for his work.

Lyrics are by David Zippel, and the book is by Emerald Fennell, who received an Oscar for writing Promising Young Woman and Emmy nominations for Killing Eve.

Their Bad Cinderella musical keeps the basics of the story intact, in that the title character is a maid who, with the help of a fairy godmother, transforms into a beautiful princess in order to attend a prince's ball. But this Cinderella is an outspoken rebel in a town obsessed with looks. Her Godmother comes in the form of a plastic surgeon, but she learns that inner beauty and being true to oneself is better than any makeover.

Bad Cinderella had its world premiere in London's West End last season (then titled just Cinderella), opening in June 2021 and running for just under a year. Webber's score received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Musical Theater Album, and the show was nominated for six WhatsOnStage Awards including Best New Musical.

A four-star London Theatre review of Bad Cinderella reads, "We could all use a fairytale right now... A little escapism to drown our troubles and remember that sometimes happy endings and dreams do come true. Well, Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cinderella is a different kind of fairytale, one that, instead, reminds us of our humanity and that sometimes things turn out as you least expect them to. Who wants to ride off into the sunset anyway when you could make mistakes and learn some things along the way?"

In the Broadway production, Linedy Genao will play the title role. This is her first leading Broadway role; she previously was an understudy in Dear Evan Hansen and an ensemble member in On Your Feet!

The Cinderella fairytale has appeared multiple times on Broadway stages in recent years. Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella musical ran on Broadway in 2013, and Cinderella is a main role in Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Into the Woods, currently playing at the St. James Theatre.

Additional casting and creative team for Webber's Bad Cinderella on Broadway has yet to be announced.

Check back for information on Bad Cinderella tickets on New York Theatre Guide.

Photo credit: Linedy Genao. (Photo by Matthew Murphy)