Ayad Akhtar's New Play Junk, Starring Steven Pasquale, Opens on Broadway

Junk, a new play by Pulitzer winner Ayad Akhtar (Disgraced), officially opens at Broadway's Vivian Beaumont Theatre on November 1. Doug Hughes directs the new work which began performances on October 5.

The 1985-set Junk stars Broadway veteran Steven Pasquale as Robert Merkin, the resident genius of the upstart investment firm Sacker Lowell who has just landed on the cover of Time magazine. Hailed as "America's Alchemist," his proclamation that "debt is an asset" has propelled him to dizzying heights. Zealously promoting his belief in the near-sacred infallibility of markets, he is trying to reshape the world.

The full cast of Junk includes Ito Aghayere, Phillip James Brannon, Tony Carlin, Demosthenes Chrysan, Jenelle Chu, Caroline Hewitt, Rick Holmes, Ted Koch, Ian Lassiter, Teresa Avia Lim, Adam Ludwig, Sean McIntyre, Nate Miller, Steven Pasquale, Ethan Phillips, Matthew Rauch, Matthew Saldivar, Charlie Semine, Michael Siberry, Miriam Silverman, Joey Slotnick, Henry Stram and Stephanie Umoh.

To cheer the show's opening night, Broadway.com Resident Artist Justin "Squigs" Roberton sketched a portrait of Pasquale and his co-stars in the exciting new work of a master playwright.



About the Artist: With a desire to celebrate the magic of live theater and those who create it, and with a deep reverence for such touchstones as the work of Al Hirschfeld and the wall at Sardi’s, Squigs is happy and grateful to be among those carrying on the traditions where theater and caricature meet. He was born and raised in Oregon, lived in Los Angeles for quite a long time and now calls New York City his home.