Groundhog Day begins performances on Broadway tonight

The Broadway premiere of Groundhog Day begins previews at Broadway's August Wilson Theatre tonight. An official opening is scheduled for April 17, 2017.

Groundhog Day features a book by Danny Rubin (based on his screenplay, co-written with Harold Ramis) and music & lyrics by Tim Minchin.

Synopsis: "Groundhog Day is the story of Phil Connors, an arrogant Pittsburgh TV weatherman who, when sent to cover the annual Groundhog Day event in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, finds himself caught in a time loop where he is forced to repeat the same day again and again... and again. As each day plays out exactly the same as before Phil becomes increasingly despondent, but is there a lesson to be learned through his experiences, will he ever unlock the secret and break the cycle?"

The cast of Groundhog Day includes two-time Tony nominee Andy Karl, who reprises his West End role as Phil Connors, alongside Barrett Doss (as Rita Hanson) and Rebecca Faulkenberry, John Sanders, Andrew Call, Raymond J. Lee, Heather Ayers, Kevin Bernard, Gerard Canonico, Rheaume Crenshaw, Michael Fatica, Katy Geraghty, Camden Gonzales, Jordan Grubb, Taylor Iman Jones, Tari Kelly, Josh Lamon, Joseph Medeiros, Sean Montgomery, William Parry, Jenna Rubaii, Vishal Vaidya, Travis Waldschmidt and Natalie Wisdom.

The creative team of Groundhog Day features seven of the creators of the West End and Broadwy hit Matilda, who reunited for the project. These include director Matthew Warchus, composer and lyricist Tim Minchin, choreographer Peter Darling, costume & set designer Rob Howell, lighting designer Hugh Vanstone, sound designer Simon Baker and orchestrator & musical supervisor Christopher Nightingale.

The Broadway production is co-produced by André Ptaszynski for Whistle Pig Productions and Lia Vollack for Columbia Live Stage.

The 1993 film, with a screenplay by Danny Rubin and Harold Ramis, based on a story by Rubin, and directed by Ramis, starred Bill Murray, Andie MacDowell, and Chris Elliott. Released by Columbia Pictures, it was one of the top grossing films of 1993.

Click HERE to read our 5-star review of the West End premiere production on our London Theatre partner site.

Andy Karl earned Tony nominations for his performances in 'Rocky' (2014) and 'On the Twentieth Century' (2015). His other Broadway credits include 'The Mystery of Edwin Drood,' '9 to 5,' 'Legally Blonde,' 'Jersey Boys,' 'Wicked,' and 'Saturday Night Fever.'