Alex Brightman and Colin Donnell Board Broadway's The Shark is Broken | Playbill

Broadway News Alex Brightman and Colin Donnell Board Broadway's The Shark is Broken

The two join Ian Shaw in the behind-the-scenes Jaws comedy.

Alex Brightman and Colin Donnell

The Shark Is Broken—the Olivier-nominated comedy about the on-set struggles of the film Jaws—has found its full Broadway cast. Two-time Tony nominee Alex Brightman (Beetlejuice) and Colin Donnell (Anything Goes) will join previously announced West End star Ian Shaw for the Main Stem transfer. Performances begin July 25 at the Golden Theatre for a limited engagement through November 19. Opening night is set for August 10. 

Jaws opened June 20, 1975 (48 years ago, today), and is considered one of the first true summer blockbusters. The Steven Spielberg film grossed almost $800 million and earned three Academy Awards (Best Original Score, Best Sound Mixing, and Best Film Editing). But it was not without its problems. 

The Shark Is Broken, written by Shaw and Joseph Nixon, takes audiences behind the scenes as the film's three stars try to cope with foul weather, a temperamental mechanical shark, and each other's egos. 

Shaw reprises his role as his father Robert Shaw, who played Quint in the film, while Brightman will play Richard Dreyfuss and Donnell will play Roy Scheider.

Brightman is Tony-nominated for his roles in Beetlejuice and School of Rock. Donnell was last seen on Broadway in Violet.

The Shark Is Broken premiered at Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2019, and opened in the West End in 2021. The work is, believe it or not, one of two theatrical works tracking the creation of Jaws. A separate musical, titled Bruce, made its world premiere at Seattle Rep in 2022. The Shark is Broken comes to Broadway following a 2022 North American premiere at Toronto's Royal Alexandra Theatre. The London bow was nominated for Best Entertainment or Comedy Play at the 2022 Olivier Awards.

Guy Masterson makes his Broadway directorial debut, leading a creative team that includes scenic and costume design by Duncan Henderson, lighting design by Jon Clark, sound design and original music by Adam Cork, and video design by Nina Dunn. Casting is by Jim Carnahan Casting.

 
Today’s Most Popular News:
 X

Blocking belongs
on the stage,
not on websites.

Our website is made possible by
displaying online advertisements to our visitors.

Please consider supporting us by
whitelisting playbill.com with your ad blocker.
Thank you!