NEW YORK—In celebration of the musical’s first Broadway preview tonight, Tony Award-winning producers James L. Nederlander and Hunter Arnold have released a special sneak peek video clip of “Crazy” from rehearsals of Once Upon A One More Time. The new musical, powered by the music of Grammy Award-winning pop icon Britney Spears, begins performances tonight, Saturday, May 13, 2023 at the Marquis Theater in New York City.

Helmed by internally acclaimed, Drama Desk-nominated Director & Choreographers Keone & Mari Madrid (Beyond Babel, Karate Kid), Once Upon a One More Time is an electrifying and witty new musical comedy featuring an original story written by Jon Hartmere (bare, The Upside). Fully authorized and licensed by Britney Spears post-conservatorship, and inspired by an idea she proposed, the musical weaves the chart-topping hits of the undisputed Princess of Pop – including “Oops I Did It Again,” “Lucky,” “Circus,” “Toxic”, and more – into a brand-new kind of fairy tale. When Cinderella, Snow White, and other storybook heroines gather for book club, they always discuss the same book, Grimms’ Fairy Tales — because as far as they know, it’s the only book that’s ever been written. That is, until a rogue fairy godmother drops The Feminine Mystique into their corseted laps. From now on, “happily ever after” will never be the same.

Leading the Original Broadway Cast of the musical, which will celebrate its official opening night at the Marquis Theater on Thursday, June 22, 2023, are Briga Heelan (“Great News”, “Ground Floor”) will star as Cinderella, Justin Guarini (“American Idol”, Wicked) as Prince Charming, and Aisha Jackson (Frozen, Paradise Square) as Snow White, reprising the roles they originated in the world premiere production of Once Upon a One More Time, which played a sold-out, extended engagement at the Tony Award-winning Shakespeare Theatre Company (STC), in Washington, D.C, from November 29, 2021-January 9, 2022. Joining the cast for the Broadway premiere are two-time Tony Award nominee Jennifer Simard (Company, Mean Girls) as Stepmother, two-time Tony Award nominee Adam Godley (The Lehman Trilogy, Hulu’s “The Great”) as The Narrator, comedienne Brooke Dillman (“The Wayne Brady Show”, “The Office”) as The O.F.G. (Original Fairy Godmother), Ryann Redmond (Frozen, Bring It On) as Stepsister Belinda, and Tess Soltau (Wicked, “The Good Fight”) as Stepsister Betany.

Gabrielle Beckford (The Prom 1st Natl. Tour, Gloria: A Life at A.R.T.) will play Rapunzel, Ashley Chiu (KPOP at Ars Nova, She Said) is Sleeping Beauty, Nathan Levy (Dear Evan Hansen) is Clumsy, Ryan Steele (Newsies, Matilda the Musical) is Prince Erudite, Morgan Whitley (American Psycho, The Greatest Showman) is Princess Pea, and Lauren Zakrin (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812) is Little Mermaid. Rounding out the cast are Matt Allen (Escape to Margaritaville, Something Rotten), Liv Battista (Billie Eilish Tour, Beyond Babel) as Belle, Jacob Burns (Hamilton Tour), Pauline Casiño (“Little Voice” on Apple TV+, Candace Brown’s The Soul Spot) as Esmeralda, Selene Haro (Beyond Babel) as Gretel, Joshua Daniel Johnson (Disney’s Sneakerella) as Prince Brawny, Amy Hillner Larsen (The Marvelous Wonderettes, Hairspray Tour) as Goldilocks, Justice Moore (Hamilton, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”) as Red, Kevin Trinio Perdido (Almost Famous, Fire Island The Musical) as  Prince Mischievous, Mikey Ruiz (Beyond Babel) as Prince Gregarious, Salisha Thomas (Beautiful: The Carole King Musical), Josh Tolle (Kinky Boots 1st Natl. Tour, The Heart of Rock & Roll) as Prince Suave, Diana Vaden (Tootsie, Mack and Mabel at Encores!) as Swing, Mila Weir as Little Girl, Stephen Scott Wormley (The Lion King, “The Blacklist”) as Prince Affable, and Isabella Ye as Little Girl.

The world premiere production of Once Upon a One More Time played a sold-out, extended engagement at the Tony Award-winning Shakespeare Theatre Company (STC), in Washington, D.C, from November 29, 2021-January 9, 2022, and was praised as “ingenious, and improbably funny” (Washingtonian). The musical was described as “an evening of buoyant delight” by The Washington Post critic Peter Marks, who also wrote in a feature on the production, “Once Upon A One More Time is one of the most ambitious new musicals in a theater world awakening to a creative new day – a most unlikely cultural mash-up, reframing a bevy of storybook characters in an enlightened, modern context.”  NPR said the show, “combines fairytales, Betty Friedan and Britney Spears in a large-scale, Broadway way, resulting in clever, uproarious fun. Who couldn’t use a little more fun these days?”  DC Metro Theater Arts raved the show is, “inspiring! A full-fledged, Grade A, gold star success… and exactly the party we need right now. It is as thought-provoking as it is toe-tapping, as clever as it is hilarious, as bold as it is shiny. I predict it will be an intergenerational smash.”

Joining the Madrids and Hartmere on the musical’s creative team are five-time Tony Award nominee David Leveaux (Nine, Romeo and Juliet on Broadway, NBC’s “Jesus Christ Superstar LIVE”) as Creative Consultant, Tony Award-nominated Scenic Designer Anna Fleischle (Hangmen, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie), Costume Designer Loren Elstein (Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead), Tony Award-winning Lighting Designer Kenneth Posner (Wicked, Beetlejuice), Sound Designer Andrew Keister (KPOP, On Your Feet!), Tony-nominated Projection Designer Sven Ortel (Newsies) and Drama Desk nominated Wig Designer Nikiya Mathis (Death of a Salesman, Chicken & Biscuits). Casting is by Hardt Casting (West Side Story).

TICKETS AND SCHEDULE

Tickets are on sale at Ticketmaster.com, or in person at the Marquis Theatre Box Office (210 W 46th Street).  Groups of 10+ can call: 212-840-3890 or 800-714-8451. A limited number of $47 tickets will be available for each performance via digital lottery at https://lottery.broadwaydirect.com/show/omt-ny/. For performances through June 24, the playing schedule for Once Upon a One More Time is Monday–Saturday at 8:00PM, with matinees on Wednesdays and Saturdays at 2:00PM. Beginning June 27, the regular playing schedule is: Tuesdays and Thursdays at 7:00PM, Fridays at 8:00PM, Wednesdays and Saturdays at 2:00PM & 8:00PM, Sundays at 3:00PM. Holiday weeks may vary, and there are no matinees on May 17 or May 24. Beginning September 5, the Wednesday schedule is 7:00PM only, and the Sunday schedule is 2:00PM & 7:00PM. Visit the offical website at https://onemoretimemusical.com/

Sneak peek of  ‘Crazy’ rehearsal video for Once Upon a One More Time, new musical empowered by the hits of Britney Spears

Videos courtesy of Vivacity Media Group.

Animated logo for Once Upon a One More Time. Click below for video.

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NEW YORK— Tony Award-winning producers James L. Nederlander and Hunter Arnold are pleased to announce the complete cast for the Broadway premiere of Once Upon A One More Time, the new musical comedy that flips the script on famous fairytales, powered by the music of Grammy Award-winning international pop icon Britney Spears. Helmed by internationally acclaimed, Drama Desk-nominated director & choreographers Keone & Mari Madrid (Beyond Babel, Karate Kid), the musical begins previews Saturday, May 13, 2023, at the Marquis Theatre in New York City, and celebrates its opening night on Thursday, June 22, 2023. Tickets are on sale at Ticketmaster.com/877-250-2929.

Briga Heelan. Photo: Courtesy of Vivacity Media.

Joining Briga Heelan (“Great News”, “Ground Floor”) as Cinderella, Justin Guarini (“American Idol”, Wicked) as Prince Charming, Aisha Jackson (Frozen, Paradise Square) as Snow White, two-time Tony Award nominee Jennifer Simard (Company, Mean Girls) as Stepmother, and two-time Tony Award nominee Adam Godley (The Lehman Trilogy, Hulu’s “The Great”) as The Narrator, are comedienne Brooke Dillman (“The Wayne Brady Show”, “The Office”) as The O.F.G. (Original Fairy Godmother), Ryann Redmond (Frozen, Bring It On) as Stepsister Belinda, and Tess Soltau (Wicked, “The Good Fight”) as Stepsister Betany.

Two-time Tony Award nominee Jennifer Simard. Photo: Sarah Jenkins.

Broadway veteran Ryann Redmond. Photo: Courtesy of Vivacity Media.

Justin Guarini as Prince Charming. Photo: Emilio Madrid.

For more information, please visit https://onemoretimemusical.com/

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‘THE LEHMAN TRILOGY’: (left to right) Adam Godley, Simon Russell Beale & Adrian Lester. Photo: Julieta Cervantes

THE LEHMAN TRILOGY
By Stefano Massini
Adapted by Ben Power
Directed by Sam Mendes
Through January 2, 2022
Nederlander Theatre
208 West 41st Street
(877-250-2929), https://thelehmantrilogy.com/

By David NouNou

Once in a generation comes that elusive masterpiece; a play that sparks the imagination, grabs the heart, and hauntingly seeps into the subconscious and stays with you forever. A play has to seize your attention from the first image, and when we saw it in London in June 2019, it has remained with us till now.

The first image that appears in The Lehman Trilogy is of three men dressed in formal attire in a chromed high-rise office building, awaiting the funereal end of something.

Then Part I begins with the title “The Brothers.”

It is 1844 and Hayum Lehmann, (Simon Russell Beale) the son of a cattle merchant, arrives at New York’s Ellis Island from Rimpar, Bavaria. The immigration officer, not understanding the name, dubs him Henry Lehman who then settles in Birmingham, Alabama to open a general store. In 1847, Mendel Lehmann (Adrian Lester) arrives from Germany to join his brother and becomes Emanuel Lehman. Finally, in 1850, the last brother Mayer Lehman (Adam Godley) arrives to the firm which becomes the Lehman Brothers. They are in the business of buying and reselling cotton in the South. They are of Jewish heritage, with strict Jewish observances.

Now that the triumvirate is complete, the dynamics begin. Henry and Mayer base themselves in Birmingham while Emanuel’s restlessness for more moves him to New York. As their firm is growing, Henry, the eldest, dies in 1855 of yellow fever. The formal attire that costume designer Katrina Lindsay created is multipurpose. The actors wear the same articles of clothing throughout the play. In the opening scene these costumes represented outfits for bankers and brokers, in the beginning of the play it was the attire for that time period, and at Henry’s death, they are used as black suits, what mourners wear to sit Shiva for a whole week.

Part II is “Fathers and Son.”

The first part gave us the initial introduction to the three Lehman’s, the second part introduces us to the marriages and wives and the generations that came after them. All the ensuing characters are played by the same three above mentioned actors.  It is here that we meet Philip, son of Emmanuel, Herbert, the son of Mayer, and the astute and ruthless Robert “Robbie” Lehman, the grandson of Emanuel and thus the advent of greed and corruption begins. As the country gets closer to the 20^th Century, the more Lehman Brothers grows, exponentially, the avarice and lawlessness ensues. As Mayer dies in 1897 and then Emanuel in 1907, the Jewish observances and respect for Shiva dwindles lower and lower. The mourning period is shortened to fit for business duties. By 1929, the Lehman Corporation is becoming an investment company.

Part III is “The Immortal.”

As the country goes through turmoil: Wall Street crashes, the depression, World War II, Pearl Harbor, Lehman Brothers weathers all the storms and ultimately profits. In 1965, Robbie Lehman sets up a trading department at Lehman Brothers. By the time he dies, there is no mourning period; after all, banks and Wall Street do not close for mere mortals. In 1984, American Express bought Lehman Brothers and disposed of them in 1994. In 2007, Lehman Brothers was entangled in the subprime mortgage lending crisis, and in 2008, they filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition. As hundreds of billions of dollars were wiped out in bad loans, the financial collapse in 2008 becomes the worst crisis since the depression.

The three men dressed in formal attire in a chromed high tower office building have seen the funereal end and the closing of Lehman Brothers.

Stefano Massini has written an epic play in scale and grandeur. It involves immigrants, Judaism, beliefs, family, work ethics, greed, monopoly, crises from the scaling up to the ultimate drop. It takes in consideration the people it affected and the lives it shattered.

Sam Mendes, with his formidable insight, has brought vision and focus to this formidable play on a massive scale. Between him and his set designer Es Devlin, they created a visual stunning world of glass, chrome, cubicles, representing, stores, banks, offices, buildings and skyscrapers. The set is constantly spinning or in motion to represent any place that the action takes place. Everything is magnificently lit by lighting designer Jon Clark to capture every mood and nuance of any scene.

Now, all this would serve the mind and the optics, but you need the actors to breathe life into these words and set the stage on fire. Still with us are Simon Russell Beale, Adam Godley, and the new addition is Adrian Lester. What was once an intertwined, seamless unit now gives us pause. Mr. Lester has replaced Ben Miles, and this makes it more challenging to visualize them as three brothers coming from Bavaria and that they’re related. However, in theatre, one must suspend disbelief.  In the London production, one marveled at their precision, delivering their lines and playing off each other. They complemented each other magnificently. Now, you just have great acting; the seamless balance has been thrown off.

As a play, The Lehman Trilogy is still the masterpiece we saw in London.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published October 14, 2021
Reviewed at October 2021 press preview performance.

‘THE LEHMAN TRILOGY’: (left to right) Adam Godley, Simon Russell Beale & Adrian Lester.
Photo: Julieta Cervantes.

‘THE LEHMAN TRILOGY’: Adrian Lester & Adam Godley. Photo: Julieta Cervantes.

‘THE LEHMAN TRIOLOGY’: Adrian Lester. Photo: Julieta Cervantes.

‘THE LEHMAN TRILOGY’: Adam Godley. Photo: Julieta Cervantes.

‘THE LEHMAN TRILOGY’: The cast. Photo: Julieta Cervantes.

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‘THE LEHMAN TRILOGY’: Simon Russell Beale, Ben Miles & Adam Godley in the National Theatre production, now back in London at the Piccadilly Theatre. Photo: Mark Douet

THE LEHMAN TRILOGY
By Stefano Massini
Adapted by Ben Power
Directed by Sam Mendes
Through August 31, 2019
Piccadilly Theatre
16 Denman Street
London, United Kingdom
https://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/shows/the-lehman-trilogy-at-piccadilly-theatre
Broadcast on NT Live on Thursday, July 25, 2019. Info at  http://ntlive.nationaltheatre.org.uk/productions/72252-the-lehman-trilogy

By David NouNou

Once in a generation comes that elusive masterpiece to the theater, a play that sparks the imagination, grabs the heart, and hauntingly seeps into the subconscious and stays with you forever. I won’t add musicals to this list, although there have been many, as they have an innate ability to entertain. A play has to seize your attention from the first image.

The first image that appears in The Lehman Trilogy is of three men dressed in formal attire in a chromed high-rise office building, awaiting the funereal end of something.

Then Part I begins with the title “The Brothers.”

It is 1844. Hayum Lehmann (Simon Russell Beale), the son of a cattle merchant, arrives at New York’s Ellis Island from Rimpar, Bavaria. The immigration officer, not understanding the name, dubs him Henry Lehman. He then settles in Birmingham, Alabama to open a general store. In 1847, Mendel Lehmann (Ben Miles) arrives from Germany to join his brother and becomes Emanuel Lehman. Finally, in 1850, the last brother Mayer Lehman (Adam Godley) arrives to the firm which becomes the Lehman Brothers. They are in the business of buying and reselling cotton in the South. They are of Jewish heritage, with strict Jewish observances,

Now that the triumvirate is complete, the dynamics begin. Henry and Mayer base themselves in Birmingham while Emanuel’s restlessness for more moves him to New York. As their firm is growing, Henry, the eldest, dies in 1855 of yellow fever. The formal attire that costume designer Katrina Lindsay created is multipurpose. The actors wear the same articles of clothing throughout the play. In the opening scene, these costumes represented outfits for bankers and brokers; in the beginning of the play it was the attire for that time period; and at Henry’s death, they are used as black suits, what mourners wear to sit shiva for a whole week.

Part II is “Fathers and Sons.”

The first part gave us the initial introduction to the three Lehmans, the second part introduces us to the marriages and wives and the generations that came after them. All the ensuing characters are played by the same three above-mentioned actors. It is here that we meet Philip, son of Emmanuel, Herbert, the son of Mayer, and the astute and ruthless Robert “Robbie” Lehman, the grandson of Emanuel and thus the advent of greed and corruption begins. As the country gets closer to the 20^th Century, the more Lehman Brothers grows, exponentially, the avarice and lawlessness ensues. As Mayer dies in 1897 and then Emanuel in 1907, the Jewish observances and respect for Shiva dwindles lower and lower. The mourning period is shortened to fit for business duties. By 1929, the Lehman Corporation, is becoming an investment company.

Part III is “The Immortal.”

As the country goes through turmoil: Wall Street crashes, the depression, World War II, Pearl Harbor, Lehman Brothers weathers all the storms and ultimately profits. In 1965, Robbie Lehman sets up a trading department at Lehman Brothers. By the time he dies, there is no mourning period, after all, banks and Wall Street doesn’t close for mere mortals. In 1984, American Express bought Lehman Brothers and disposed of them in 1994. In 2007, Lehman Brothers was entangled in the subprime mortgage lending crisis, and in 2008 they filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition. As hundreds of billions of dollars were wiped out in bad loans, it is the worst crisis since the depression.

The three men dressed in formal attire in a chromed high tower office building have seen the funereal end and the closing of Lehman Brothers.

The show runs for 3 and 20 minutes, with two intermissions and can only be described as an epic masterpiece. A masterpiece comes once a generation. I will only go back to the year 2000, since the early masterpieces I have seen were as revivals, I can’t count those. The three I have witnessed firsthand are War Horse, a visual feast for the eyes, heart and mind; The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, a monumental achievement that arrests the mind and heart; and now The Lehman Trilogy that inflames the mind and soul of how did things get so out of hand? Ironically, all three are English plays.

Stefano Massini has written an epic play in scale and grandeur. It involves immigrants, Judaism, beliefs, family, work ethics, greed, monopoly, crises, from the scaling up to the ultimate drop. It takes into consideration the people it affected and the lives it shattered.

Massive in scale, and to bring vision and focus to all these words and pages a strong director with formidable insight and intellect was needed to give it shape and order. The man to do it was Sam Menses, who just recently won a Tony Award for Best Director of a Play for The Ferryman. Between him and his set designer Es Devlin, they created a visually stunning world of glass, chrome, cubicles, representing, stores, banks, offices, buildings and skyscrapers. The set is constantly spinning or in motion to represent any place that the action takes place. Everything is magnificently lit by lighting designer Jon Clark to capture every mood and nuance of any scene.

Now all this would serve the mind and the optics, but you need the actors to breathe life into these words and set the stage on fire. You cannot separate Simon Russell Beale, Adam Godley, and Ben Miles; they are so intertwined as a unit, you cannot single one form the other. One just marvels at their precision, delivering their lines and playing off each other. They complement each other through and through.

The Lehman Trilogy started its run at the National Theatre in London in 2018, then came to the Park Avenue Armory for one month in New York in March 2019 where tickets were scarcer than hen’s teeth. It has now moved back to London at the Piccadilly Theatre for a limited run through August 31, 2019.

It would be worth it to fly to London to catch The Lehman Trilogy and then fly back to New York if you didn’t suffer any jet lag. Let’s hope this show eventually comes to Broadway for a regular run where people can enjoy this epic masterpiece of the ages and not just for the privileged few who paid a fortune to see it. It has to be seen by every theater-loving individual because this is the glorious stuff of which theatrical legends are made.

Can’t make it to London this summer? The Lehman Trilogy will be broadcast on NT Live on Thursday, July 25, 2019 at cinemas across America. Click here for more information.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published June 27, 2019
Reviewed at performance in London on June 12, 2019

‘THE LEHMAN’ TRILOGY: (left to right) Simon Russell Beale, Adam Godley and Ben Miles. Photo: Mark Douet

Simon Russell Beale, Adam Godley & Ben Miles. Photo: Mark Douet

‘THE LEHMAN TRILOGY’: Ben Miles. Photo: Mark Douet

‘THE LEHMAN TRILOGY’ (left to right): Adam Godley, Simon Russell Beale & Ben Miles. Photo: Mark Douet

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