Odds and Ends: Spring Awakening Returns Off-Broadway, Cats: The Jellicle Ball Celebrates Pride & More
Plus, casting is set for the West End transfer of Into the Woods, Rent's 30th Anniversary Concert goes global and Hadestown unveils a new look at its big-screen debut
(Photo by Sergio Villarini for Broadway.com)
What to Know
- Spring Awakening returns off-Broadway this fall with Tony winner Danya Taymor directing at Studio Seaview
- Cats: The Jellicle Ball celebrates Pride Month through special NYC events; Into the Woods has announced initial casting for its upcoming West End transfer
- Rent and Hadestown reach wider audiences as Rent's 30th Anniversary Concert adds a global livestream option and the Hadestown West End proshot heads to North American movie theaters on July 24
Here's a quick roundup of stories you might have missed.
Re-Awakening
Now, that’s heaven! Tony winner Danya Taymor will direct a revival of Steven Sater and Duncan Sheik’s Spring Awakening off-Broadway this fall at Studio Seaview. The staging will be choreographed by Celia Rowlson-Hall with music supervision by Or Matias. Open call auditions will take place this July. Additional creative team members will be announced at a later date. A re-imagining of Frank Wedekind's 1891 play, Spring Awakening features music by Sheik with lyrics and book by Sater. The Tony-winning musical depicts the sexual awakening of repressed teens in 19th-century Germany. Spring Awakening first opened on Broadway in 2006 directed by Tony winner Michael Mayer, going on to play 859 performances. The original production received eight Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and featured Jonathan Groff in the role of Melchior, with Lea Michele as Wendla and John Gallagher Jr. as Moritz, for which he won a Tony. It was revived on Broadway in 2015 with Deaf West Theatre, directed by Tony winner Michael Arden.
Jellicle Pride
June is busting out all over, which means it's officially Pride! To celebrate, Cats: The Jellicle Ball is hosting a series of events, including a screening of the landmark documentary Paris is Burning hosted by Junior LaBeija and co–producer Lena Waithe at The Ned NYC on June 15. LaBeija plays Gus the Theatre Cat in The Jellicle Ball and is prominently featured in Paris is Burning (we have him to thank for “OPULENCE, YOU OWN EVERYTHING!” and “It do take nerve”). On June 28, the cast will kick off the 2026 NYC Pride March with a performance from the show, which will be covered live by WABC-TV. Cats: The Jellicle Ball received nine 2026 Tony nominations and won three, including Best Direction of a Musical for Zhailon Levingston and Bill Rauch. For The Jellicle Ball’s full Pride schedule, refer to the calendar below:
Wood’nt You Like to Know?
We’ve never been so happy! Casting has been announced for the West End transfer of Jordan Fein’s Into the Woods at the Noël Coward Theatre. Preview performances begin on September 22, with opening night set for October 7. The production will run through January 9, 2027. Joining the previously announced Kate Fleetwood as The Witch are Valda Aviks as Grandmother/Giant, Geoffrey Aymer as Cinderella’s Father, Jo Foster as Jack, Jennifer Hepburn as Cinderella’s Stepmother and Alternate Witch, Hana Ichijo as Lucinda, Julie Jupp as Jack’s Mother, Gabrielle Lewis-Dodson as Florinda and Gracie McGonigal as Little Red Riding Hood, with Jacob Fowler and Sophie Linder-Lee as standbys. Additional casting will be announced at a later date.
...But I Thought We Weren’t Gonna Pay Rent?
After tickets to Rent, the 30th Anniversary Concert sold out in (525,600) minutes, a livestream option was announced for fans around the world to tune in to the gala celebration. The one-night-only concert performance of the full show will take place on October 26 at Broadway’s Richard Rodgers Theatre as a benefit for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. Livestream tickets are available now for $30 at broadwaycares.org/rent30. Information about a limited number of special lottery tickets for the live performance at the Richard Rodgers will be announced later this summer, as will the concert performers.
Hadestrailer
As previously announced, a live capture of Hadestown filmed in London's West End is set to hit North American theatres on July 24. A new trailer of this hotly-anticipated proshot has been released following its premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 8. This filmed stage performance features five original cast members from the Broadway company: Reeve Carney as Orpheus, Eva Noblezada as Eurydice, Tony winner André De Shields as Hermes, Amber Gray as Persephone and Patrick Page as Hades. The stage production, currently playing on Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theatre, is helmed by Tony winner Rachel Chavkin. The live capture was filmed by director Brett Sullivan of Steam Motion and Sound. See you at the movies!
