Idina Menzel to star in ‘Redwood’ on Broadway

The new musical, which premiered at California’s La Jolla Playhouse earlier this year, will mark the Tony Award winner’s first return to Broadway in 10 years.

UPDATE: Redwood on Broadway, starring Idina Menzel, will play the Nederlander Theatre beginning on January 24, with opening night on February 13. The below article has also been updated to include the newly announced creative team.

She’s seeing the forest for the trees! Tony Award winner Idina Menzel will return to Broadway in 2025 in the new musical Redwood. Performance dates and a theatre have yet to be announced.

Menzel is best known for her Tony-winning performance as Elphaba in Wicked, and her other Broadway credits include Rent (Tony nomination) and Aida. Her most recent Broadway performance was in the musical If/Then, which ran from 2014-15 and earned Menzel her third Tony nomination. Now, she returns to the stage for the first time in 10 years.

“I’m so thrilled to be returning to Broadway, and the fact that I get to do it with Redwood, a musical that means so much to me, makes it even more special,” Menzel said in a statement. “This show has lived in my bones for 15 years.”

The musical follows Jesse, a successful businesswoman, wife, and mother who seems to have it all, but feels broken. She suddenly decides to leave everything behind, driving thousands of miles to northern California. There, a chance meeting and a leap of faith change her life and help her find community and healing.

Redwood was created by Menzel (concept and additional material), Tina Landau (direction, book, and lyrics), and Kate Diaz (music and lyrics). Landau, represented on Broadway in spring 2024 with Mother Play, will return to direct the musical after staging its world premiere in La Jolla, California, earlier this year.

The Redwood creative team also includes music director Haley Bennett, set designer Jason Ardizzone-West, costume designer Toni-Leslie James, lighting designer Scott Zielinski, sound designer Jonathan Deans, and media designer Hana S. Kim. Vertical movement and vertical choreography are by Melecio Estrella/BANDALOOP.

Additional cast and creative team members have yet to be announced.

Check back for information on Redwood tickets on New York Theatre Guide.

Photo credit: Idina Menzel in Redwood. (Photo by Emma Anderson)