Break Out Your Flippers & Glitter: Pageant: The Musical Will Return Off-Broadway

There are never enough drag queens on the New York stage! Pageant: The Musical will return off-Broadway beginning June 29. The tuner will play concurrently with Forbidden Broadway at The Davenport Theatre on Sunday and Monday evenings through September 1. Opening night is set for July 14. The show celebrated a sold-out benefit run for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS in February. Returning from that production are The Skivvies headliner Nick Cearley, Frankie J. Grande, Alex Ringler, Marty Thomas and Seth Tucker, who will be joined by Curtis Wiley. Additional casting will be announced soon.

Like every beauty pageant you've seen before, Pageant features contestants desperately vying for a glittering tiara. With swimsuit, talent and evening gown competitions, the show includes both the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat. Unlike some (though possibly not all) beauty pageants you've seen before, the female contestants are all played by men and the audience gets to select the winner each night.

Conceived by Robert Longbottom, Pageant is written by two-time Tony nominee Bill Russell (Side Show, The Last Smoker in America) and Frank Kelly with music by Albert Evans. The tuner premiered off-Broadway in 1991 prior to engagements in the West End and around the world. The production features choreography by Shea Sullivan, music direction by Mark Hartman, costumes by Stephen Yearick, scenic design by Paul Tate DePoo III, sound by David Sanderson and lighting by Paul Miller.