All-American Cast Revealed for Broadway's Operation Mincemeat

Jessi Kirtley, Brandon Contreras, Amanda Jill Robinson, Julia Knitel, and Jeff Kready will succeed the original West End company.

February 13, 2026 By Andrew Gans, Logan Culwell-Block

Jessi Kirtley, Brandon Contreras, Amanda Jill Robinson, Julia Knitel, and Jeff Kready (Matt Murphy)

The new set of actors who will succeed the original West End cast in the hit Broadway production of Operation Mincemeat has been revealed.

The all-American company who will lead the British-made musical beginning February 24 at the John Golden Theatre are Tony nominee Julia Knitel (Dead Outlaw, Beautiful, Bye Bye Birdie) as Ewen Montagu & Others and Jeff Kready (Masquerade, The Great Gatsby, Company) as Hester Leggatt & Others, alongside current understudies Brandon Contreras (Titanique, Almost Famous), Jessi Kirtley, and Amanda Jill Robinson, who will take over the roles of Charles Cholmondeley & Others, Jean Leslie & Others, and Johnny Bevan & Others, respectively.

As of February 24, the understudies will include Robert Ariza, Allison Guinn, Sam Hartley, Gerianne Pérez, and Lexi Rabadi.

As previously announced, after playing more than 1,000 performances in Operation Mincemeat since its inception—Tony nominees David Cumming, Natasha Hodgson, and Zoë Roberts, Tony winner Jak Malone, and Claire-Marie Hall—will play their final performance February 22 at 7:30 PM. The additional Sunday evening performance was added due to demand (there is currently a waitlist operating for both February 22 performances).

The musical is the work of U.K. comedy group SpitLip, which comprises Cumming, Hodgson, Roberts, and Felix Hagan—who took the lead on the project's music. The Broadway production is currently selling tickets through September 13. Meanwhile, it continues its run in the West End.

Video: The Opening Number for Operation Mincemeat Took 6 Years to Write

The show tells a wacky, stranger-than-fiction story that is somehow completely true, following a World War II scheme in which British Intelligence officials dressed up a corpse as an officer in the Royal Marines in order to fool the German government into believing an Allied attack on Greece and Sardinia was imminent, covering up their true plans to invade Sicily in the process. Spoiler alert—it actually worked.

The show's understudies are Contreras, Sam Hartley, Kirtley, Gerianne Pérez, and Robinson. Casting is by Carrie Gardner of C12 Casting. U.K. casting is by Pearson Casting.

Also back for the Broadway bow is director Robert Hastie, who's reunited his full London creative team, including choreographer Jenny Arnold, music director and supervisor Joe Bunker, orchestrator Steve Sidwell, set and costume designer Ben Stones, lighting designer Mark Henderson, and sound designer Mike Walker. Karen Moore serves as production stage manager.

The production is offering $39 tickets via a digital lottery program (enter at Rush.Telecharge.com) and $49 rush tickets in person daily at the Golden Theatre box office.

The Broadway run is produced by Avalon in association with SpitLip. Andrew Fell serves as executive producer.

Click here for tickets to Operation Mincemeat.