Surely, his name was uttered far more than three times during the Broadway shutdown. Rest assured: Beetlejuice is back from the dead (again). The musical adaptation of the Tim Burton film will reopen at a new home—Broadway’s Marriott Marquis Theatre—beginning April 8, 2022.
The show originally opened on Broadway at the Winter Garden Theatre in April 2019. Later that year, the production announced it would close in June 2020, with the revival of The Music Man readying to occupy the Shubert Organization-owned venue. The musical effectively closed a few weeks earlier, however, taking its final bow March 11 before the shutdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Producers had hinted at the possibility of taking the show to a new venue down the road, though such plans have remained speculation until now.
Beetlejuice, featuring a score by Eddie Perfect and a book by Scott Brown and Anthony King, centers on “strange and unusual” teen Lydia Deetz as she encounters the recently deceased couple that previously resided in her new home—and a certain freelance bio-exorcist with a taste for chaos.
The Alex Timbers-helmed musical had a peculiar initial haunt on the Main Stem, beginning its run grossing under 70 percent of its potential in most spring weeks; the show falling under its contractual "stop clause" figure is ultimately what allowed the Shubert Organization to close it (its new home is owned and operated by The Nederlander Organization). By the fall, however, the show gained popularity through social media—particularly TikTok—amassing a loyal and active fan base and, in turn, full or nearly full houses.
Beetle-mania has spread in recent months as well, with a South Korean production recently playing in Seoul.
Casting for the return engagement will be announced later. At the time of closing, the Winter Garden starred Alex Brightman in his Tony-nominated title performance and Presley Ryan as Lydia.
The production, presented by Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures and Langley Park Productions, also features choreography by Connor Gallalgher, music supervision and orchestrations by Kris Kukul, sets by David Korins, costumes by William Ivey Long, lighting by Kenneth Posner, sound design by Peter Hylenski, projections by Peter Nigrini, and puppetry by Michael Curry. Casting is by Rachel Hoffman of Telsey + Company.
Leslie Rodriguez Kritzer
