Mary Testa, Julia Murney & More Set for World Premiere of Michael John LaChiusa's Queen of the Mist

Two-time Tony nominee Mary Testa (On the Town, Marie Christine, Xanadu, 42nd Street) and Broadway vet Julia Murney (Wicked, The Wild Party, First Lady Suite) will star in the Transport Group’s forthcoming world premiere production of Queen of the Mist, featuring words and music by five-time Tony nominee Michael John LaChiusa. The musical will begin performances on October 18 at the Gym at Judson Memorial Church and open on November 6, directed by Jack Cummings III.

In addition to Testa and Murney, the cast of Queen of the Mist will include D.C. Anderson (The Phantom of the Opera, The Life Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby), Stanley Bahorek (See Rock City & Other Destinations, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee), Theresa McCarthy (Titanic, Floyd Collins), Andrew Samonsky (South Pacific, Tales of the City) and Tally Sessions (The House of Blue Leaves, Yank!).

Based on an astounding, outrageous, and haunting true story, Queen of the Mist centers on Anna Edson Taylor (Testa), who in 1901, at the age of 63, set out to be the first woman to shoot Niagara Falls in a barrel of her own design. Navigating both the treacherous Falls and a fickle public with a ravenous appetite for sensationalism, this unconventional heroine vies for her legacy in a world clamoring with swindling managers, assassins, revolutionaries, moralizing family, anarchists and activists.

La Chiusa’s musicals include The Wild Party, Marie Christine, Chronicle of a Death Foretold, Bernarda Alba, See What I Wanna See, The Highest Yellow, Little Fish, Hello Again, First Lady Suite and the recent Giant.

Queen of the Mist will have choreography by Scott Rink, musical direction by Chris Fenwick, orchestrations by Michael Starobin, scenic design by Sandra Goldmark, costume design is by Kathryn Rohe, lighting design is by R. Lee Kennedy and sound design is by Walter Trarbach.

Queen of the Mist kicks off Transport Group's 20th Century Project, a 10-year initiative spanning 10 productions (five musicals and five plays) focusing on a different decade of the 20th century. LaChiusa's musical focuses on the decade 1900-1910.