The recent Broadway production of Head Over Heels, a gender-bent, LGBTQ-inclusive Broadway musical adaptation of Philip Sidney’s Arcadia, is the recipient of Actors’ Equity Association’s Extraordinary Excellence in Diversity on Broadway Award for the 2018–2019 season.
The honor is presented annually to shows that exemplify and promote diversity, inclusion, non-traditional casting, and equal opportunities for theatre professionals. Head Over Heels arrived on Broadway June 23, 2018, at the Hudson Theatre, where it ran through January 6, 2019.
The production, which used the music of the all-female 1980s band The Go-Go’s for its score, made history through storytelling and casting. Peppermint, a fixture of New York City's drag performance scene and the runner up of RuPaul’s Drag Race’s ninth season, made history as the first performer who identifies as a trans woman to originate a principal role on Broadway. It's a historic milestone for trans and non-binary artists, who have spoken out about under representation on stage and screen.
The honor was presented to Head Over Heels producer Louise Gund and director Michael Mayer October 10 by Allyson Tucker (3rd Vice Chair of the EEO Committee) and John McGinty (Councillor and member of the EEO Committee) on behalf of Christine Toy Johnson.
