How to Get $49 Tickets to Chess on Broadway, Beginning Previews October 15

The Broadway revival of Chess begins previews at the Imperial Theatre October 15, and in celebration, some news is in order.

The production, which is set to officially open November 16, has announced an extension. Originally scheduled to continue through March 15, 2026, the production will now run through May 3.

Additionally, the production has revealed the digital lottery and rush policies for its run.

Entries for the digital lottery will be accepted beginning at 12 AM ET at Rush.Telecharge.com one day before each performance, and end the same day at 3 PM ET. Winners will be drawn at 10 AM and 3 PM ET. Winners may buy up to two tickets at $49 each.

A limited number of in-person rush tickets will be available at 10 AM the day of each performance (and 12 PM on Sundays) at the Imperial Theatre box office. There is a limit of two tickets per person, at $49 each.

Nicholas Christopher is leading the musical's Broadway return as Anatoly Sergievsky, with Tony winner Aaron Tveit as Freddie Trumper, Lea Michele as Florence Vassey, Hannah Cruz (Suffs) as Svetlana, Bradley Dean (The Phantom of the Opera) as Molokov, Sean Allan Krill (Jagged Little Pill) as Walter, and Bryce Pinkham (Holiday Inn) as The Arbiter.

The company also includes Kyla Louise Bartholomeusz, Daniel Beeman, Shavey Brown, Emma Degerstedt, Casey Garvin, Adam Halpin, Sarah Michele Lindsey, Michael Milkanin, Aleksandr Ivan Pevec, Aliah James, Sydney Jones, Sean MacLaughlin, Sarah Meahl, Ramone Nelson, Fredric Rodriguez Odgaard, Michael Olaribigbe, Katerina Papacostas, Samantha Pollino, Regine Sophia, and Katie Webber. Casting is by Jim Carnahan and Jason Thinger.

READ: Lea Michele Says the Chess Score Is a 'New Anthem' for Her

With music from ABBA’s Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, and lyrics by Tim Rice, this revival will be refreshed with a new book by Emmy winner Danny Strong (Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 & 2), and a creative team featuring director Michael Mayer (Spring Awakening) and choreographer Lorin Latarro (Waitress). Brian Usifer will serve as music supervisor.

The creative team also includes scenic designer David Rockwell, costume designer Tom Broecker, lighting designer Kevin Adams, sound designer John Shivers, video designer Peter Nigrini, associate director Johanna McKeon, and associate choreographer Travis Waldschmidt.

Based on an idea by Rice (and originally featuring a book by Richard Nelson), Chess tells the story of American and Russian chess champions playing a match against each other—and competing for the same woman—at the height of the Cold War.

READ: Danny Strong Has Spent a Decade Rewriting the Book for Chess. Now It's Finally Coming to Broadway

The musical began as a concept album released in 1984, after Tim Rice had mulled over the idea of a musical about the Cuban Missile Crisis for nearly a decade with his frequent collaborator Andrew Lloyd Webber, never quite beginning the project. In the early 1980s, he approached Andersson and Ulvaeus, who had been itching to find creative projects outside of their hit pop music group ABBA. The concept album dominated the charts worldwide, reaching number three on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, and earned global critical acclaim. Elaine Paige and Barbara Dickson's duet "I Know Him So Well" even ranked number one on the U.K.'s singles charts for a month, and "One Night in Bangkok" was an international hit.

WATCH: Learn About Chess' Complicated Journey Back to Broadway in New Streaming Documentary

The album's popularity seemed to promise a successful theatrical adaption, but the original West End production opened in 1986 to mixed reviews. Elaine Paige, Tommy Körberg, and Murray Head, who all performed on the concept album, brought their roles to life onstage as part of the original London cast, with Siobhán McCarthy taking Barbara Dickson's place. Prolific director Michael Bennett was originally signed on to helm, but pulled out due to his declining health, and Cats director Trevor Nunn took over. Bennett's vision initially was to create a "multimedia" experience for audiences, with the theatre filled to the brim with television monitors, and the stage transformed into a tilted chess floor. The stage show's book expanded the original plot explored in the concept album, with the runtime peaking at three hours and 15 minutes long. London critics were admittedly dazzled by the score and scenic vision for the show, but nearly all expressed the book as being problematic to what would otherwise be a creative revelation.

The subsequent Broadway production—which starred David Carroll, Judy Kuhn, Philip Casnoff, and Marcia Mitzman—opened to an even more negative critical reception, with reviewers nevertheless praising the score and the individual performances. Closing after just 17 previews and 68 performances, it seemed Chess' chance for success had passed. But via the concept album and later cast recordings from various stage productions, Chess found a devoted audience in the years since its premiere. In addition to several tours and West End revivals, a 2008 London concert staging featuring Josh Groban, Idina Menzel, Adam Pascal, and Kerry Ellis was recorded and released both as an album and a concert film.

Chess is being produced by Tom Hulce, Robert Ahrens, and The Shubert Organization, along with Creative Partners Productions. The production is being presented by arrangement with Three Knights and Robert Fox Ltd.

Visit ChessBroadway.com.