Roundabout Theatre Company (Todd Haimes, President/CEO, in memoriam; Scott Ellis, Interim Artistic Director) announces further casting, design team and a brand-new title for its reimagined, lovingly adapted production of The Pirates of Penzance. This jazz-infused, New Orleans-style Broadway production, now titled Pirates! The Penzance Musical has music by Arthur Sullivan, libretto by W.S. Gilbert, adaptation by Rupert Holmes, orchestrations by Joseph Joubert and Daryl Waters, music direction by Joseph Joubert, choreography by Warren Caryle and direction by Scott Ellis.
"We want everyone to know that what you're going to see is a musical that celebrates the genius of Gilbert & Sullivan while taking some joyous liberties," Ellis said. "The Pirates of Penzance actually premiered in several U.S. cities, including New Orleans, which was a big center for piracy. So, since our pirates have now landed in New Orleans, we're adapting the title to be both familiar and fresh."
The Broadway cast of Pirates! The Penzance Musical will be led by Ramin Karimloo (Pirate King), Jinkx Monsoon (Ruth), David Hyde Pierce (Gilbert/Major General Stanley), Nicholas Barasch (Frederic), Preston Truman Boyd (Sullivan/Police Sergeant) and Samantha Williams (Mabel Stanley). The cast also includes Kelly Belarmino, Maria Briggs, Eddie Cooper, Cicily Daniels, Ninako Donville, Alex Dorf, Rick Faugno, Niani Feelings, Tommy Gedrich, Alex Gibson, Afra Hines, Dan Hoy, Ryo Kamibayashi, Tatiana Lofton, Nathan Lucrezio, Shina Ann Morris, Cooper Stanton, and Bronwyn Tarboton.
The design team includes scene design by Tony Award-winner David Rockwell (She Loves Me, Doubt) costume design by Tony Award-winner Linda Cho (The Great Gatsby, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder) lighting design by Tony Award-winner Donald Holder (South Pacific, My Fair Lady, The Lion King) sound design by Tony Award-nominee Mikaal Sulaiman (Macbeth, An Enemy of the People, Doubt), and dance arrangements by John O’Neill (Harmony). Casting is by Jim Carnahan CSA & Jason Thinger CSA.
Pirates! The Penzance Musical will begin previews on Friday, April 4, 2025, and open officially on Thursday, April 24, 2025. This is a limited engagement through June 22, 2025 at the Todd Haimes Theatre (227 W. 42 St).
Gilbert & Sullivan’s pirate ship docks in New Orleans in this jazzy-bluesy vision of the crowd-pleasing classic, in an outrageously clever romp sizzling with Caribbean rhythms and French Quarter flair. With the tongue-twisting Major-General, the rabble-rousing Pirate King, newly-imagined young lovers, daring daughters, footloose pirates and fleet-footed police, there's a shipload of musical comedy delights on board to dazzle first-timers and G&S aficionados alike.
Pirates! The Penzance Musical is generously sponsored by New Orleans & Co./NewOrleans.com.
Underwriting support for Pirates! The Penzance Musical is generously provided by Salman and Vienn Al-Rashid and the Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation. Pirates! The Penzance Musical benefits from Roundabout’s Musical Production Fund with lead gifts from Salman and Vienn Al-Rashid, the Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation, Michael Kors and Lance Le Pere, Diane and Tom Tuft, and Cynthia C. Wainwright and Stephen Berger.