Caroline Set to Open Ahmanson Season
by Broadway Staff • Sep 17, 2004
Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori's Tony-nominated musical Caroline, or Change is heading to the West Coast. The tuner is set to replace Wonderful Town as the Ahmanson Theatre's season opener in Los Angeles.
"When the national tour of Wonderful Town was canceled by its producers, we immediately attempted to mount the production ourselves. It was important for us to deliver the show as promised to our subscribers. But, without a touring company and the show continuing its Broadway run, Wonderful Town was no longer available for us to produce ourselves," Artistic Director/Producer Gordon Davidson said in a statement. "But, as fortune would have it, Caroline, or Change is now available to the West Coast following its New York run. This provides us with a unique opportunity to keep this remarkable musical together."
"When the national tour of Wonderful Town was canceled by its producers, we immediately attempted to mount the production ourselves. It was important for us to deliver the show as promised to our subscribers. But, without a touring company and the show continuing its Broadway run, Wonderful Town was no longer available for us to produce ourselves," Artistic Director/Producer Gordon Davidson said in a statement. "But, as fortune would have it, Caroline, or Change is now available to the West Coast following its New York run. This provides us with a unique opportunity to keep this remarkable musical together."
The cast of the West Coast mounting will include star Tonya Pinkins and Tony winner Anika Noni Rose reprising their Broadway roles.
The musical, which closed on Broadway on August 29, is set in Louisiana in 1963 and centers on Caroline Pinkins, a black maid who works for a Jewish family. Through her intimate story, the musical aims to portray the painful changing rhythms of a nation.
Caroline, or Change, directed by George C. Wolfe, will play at the Ahmanson from November 6 through December 26 with an official opening on November 14. The production will then transfer to San Francisco.