How to Dance in Ohio, which finished its run on Broadway February 11, returned to New York for for one-night-only on May 20.
In a concert production at the Palladium Times Square, the production's original cast reunited to perform selections from the show backed by the musical’s Broadway band. The evening also included special appearances by production team members, and fans who have contributed to the production’s legacy.
See photos from the concert in the gallery below.
The parents of How to Dance in Ohio
Conor Tague
Imani Russell and Cristina Sastre
The company of How to Dance in Ohio
Amelia Fei
The company of How to Dance in Ohio
Imani Russell, Ashley Wool, Madison Kopec
Madison Kopec and Desmond Edwards
Haven Burton and Darlesia Cearcy
Ashley Wool
Amelia Fei
Desmond Edwards
The company of How to Dance in Ohio
Liam Pearce
The company of How to Dance in Ohio
The new neurodivergent coming-of-age musical opened at the Belasco Theatre December 10, 2023 after beginning previews November 15.
The production was a major milestone for neurodivergent representation on Broadway, with seven openly autistic actors playing the show's seven autistic characters, as echoed in the show's mantra: "nothing about us without us."
The show released its cast album January 19.
Directed by Sammi Cannold, the production was a verifiable cornucopia of Broadway debuts, with Cannold making her long-awaited Main Stem debut alongside the show's writers, composer Jacob Yandura and book writer and lyricist Rebekah Greer Melocik, and much of the cast.
Adapted from Alexandra Shiva's 2015 HBO documentary, the show follows the challenges faced by a group of autistic young adults at a counseling center in Ohio. With the support of clinical psychologist Dr. Emilio Amigo, the center arranges a spring formal dance and encourages them as they encounter love, fear, stress, excitement, and hope, along the path to human connection.
READ: How To Dance in Ohio Is Making Sure the Show Is Sensory Friendly Onstage and Off
How to Dance in Ohio previously enjoyed a world premiere at Syracuse Stage in 2022. Much of that production's cast, which includes autistic actors in the seven principal roles, reprised their performances for the Broadway run, including Desmond Edwards as Remy, Amelia Fei as Caroline, Madison Kopec as Marideth, Liam Pearce as Drew, Imani Russell as Mel, Conor Tague as Tommy, and Ashley Wool as Jessica. All seven made their Broadway debuts with the musical.
The Broadway cast also included Caesar Samayoa (Come From Away) as Dr. Emilio Amigo, Cristina Sastre as Ashley Amigo, Haven Burton (Shrek) as Terry, Darlesia Cearcy (Shuffle Along...) as Johanna, Carlos L Encinias (Les Misérables), Nick Gaswirth (The Great Comet), Melina Kalomas, Martín Solá, Jean Christian Barry (Stranger Sings), Collin Hancock, Hunter Hollingsworth, Marina Jansen, Ayanna Thomas, and Marina Pires.
VIDEO: Go Behind the Scenes of Broadway's How to Dance in Ohio
The creative team from the world premiere run continued with the show to the Main Stem, including choreographer Mayte Natalio, music director Lily Ling, scenic designer Robert Brill, costume designer Sarafina Bush, lighting designer Bradley King, and sound designer Connor Wang. Orchestrations are by Bruce Coughlin, and Scott Rowen serves as production stage manager. Casting is by Benton Whitley and Micah Johnson-Levy of Whitley Theatrical. ShowTown Theatricals serves as general manager, and Mary-Mitchell Campbell is a music consultant.
To ensure authentic autistic representation on stage, the production also worked with an accessibility team, including Autistic Creative Consultant Ava Xiao-Lin Rigelhaupt, Director of Community Engagement Becky Leifman, associate producer Jeremy Wein, production assistant Liz Weber, and script consultant Nicole D'Angelo.
