Carmen Cusack, Harry Hadden-Paton, and Tony Yazbeck will return to Broadway as Clare Boothe Luce, Aldous Huxley, and Cary Grant, respectively, in the musical Flying Over Sunset. The new work from James Lapine, Tom Kitt, and Michael Korie will be presented by Lincoln Center Theater in the Vivian Beaumont Theater in the spring.
Flying Over Sunset, a 1950s-set story which explores the role and effects of LSD (before it was deemed illegal), is scheduled to begin performances March 12, 2020, ahead of an April 16 opening.
READ: James Lapine, Tom Kitt and Michael Korie Working on New Musical About LSD
The musical features a book and direction by Lapine (Falsettos, Sunday in the Park With George), music by Kitt (Next to Normal, If/Then), and lyrics by Korie (War Paint, Grey Gardens). Michelle Dorrance, founder and artistic director of Dorrance Dance, will make her theatrical debut as choreographer.
Though a work of fiction, Flying Over Sunset is inspired by three well-known individuals: Brave New World author Huxley (Hadden-Paton), The Women playwright, diplomat, and congresswoman Luce (Cusack), and Hollywood leading man Grant (Yazbeck), each of whom experimented with the drug LSD. The musical sees them come together at crossroads in their lives. Under the influence of the drug, they confront the mysteries of their lives and their world.
Additional casting will be announced.
The production will have sets by Beowulf Boritt, costumes by Toni-Leslie James, lighting by Bradley King, sound by Dan Moses Schreier, projections by Jeff Sugg, and casting by Telsey + Co, with orchestrations by Michael Starobin and music direction by Kimberly Grigsby. The LCT premiere is produced in association with Jack Shear.
