Antoinette Chinonye Nwandu

Antoinette Chinonye Nwandu's 'Pass Over' to open on Broadway

The Lincoln Center Theatre production, directed by Danya Taymor, will open at the August Wilson Theatre.

Suzy Evans
Suzy Evans

Antoinette Chinonye Nwandu's Pass Over will open on Broadway at the August Wilson Theatre for a limited run. The Lincoln Center Theater production will be directed by Danya Taymor. Pass Over begins previews at the August Wilson Theatre on August 4, ahead of an opening night on September 12 and performances to October 10.

Inspired by Waiting for Godot and the story of Exodus, Pass Over centers on a city street corner where two men talk and dream of their "promised land," when a stranger interrupts their meeting. The play had its world premiere in 2017 at the Steppenwolf Theatre Company in Chicago, where it was captured for Amazon Prime by Spike Lee, and Nwandu presented an updated version of the play at Lincoln Center Theater in 2018. Nwandu has updated the play for each production to meet the current moment, and will be updating the work again for the Broadway production.

"As my team and I prepare to produce this play again, I've asked myself: when the state-sanctioned murder of Black people in the United States remains visible and routine, and the world continues to reckon with the loss, trauma, and alienation caused by the global pandemic, how do I meet this moment?" Nwandu said in a statement. "Though much about Pass Over remains a lament over the lives of Black people stolen too soon, I am happy to confirm that my team and I, along with our producers, are presenting a new version that centers the health, hope and joy of our audiences, especially Black people. We are re-uniting to envision this play again, to tell a version of the story on Broadway where Moses & Kitch both survive their encounter with white oppression."

The original cast from the Lincoln Center Theater producton will reprise their roles. Jon Michael Hill, Namir Smallwood and Gabriel Ebert will star in Pass Over.

Pass Over joins Thoughts on a Colored ManLackawanna Blues, and Skeleton Crew in the lineup of new plays announced to open on Broadway.

The production will feature the design team from the 2018 Lincoln Center production, including set design by Wilson Chin, costume design by Sarafina Bush, lighting design by Marcus Doshi, and sound design by Justin Ellington.

Pass Over is at the August Wilson Theatre from August 4 - October 10.

Photo credit: Antoinette Chinonye Nwandu

Article Originally Published: 4 May 2021

Originally published on

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