Broadway Lights
Dallas Theater Center actor inks starring role in 1776 Broadway revival
A member of Dallas Theater Center's Brierley Resident Acting company is bound for Broadway again — when Broadway reopens, of course.
Liz Mikel, who traveled to the Great White Way in 2011 with DTC's Lysistrata Jones, has been announced as part of the cast for a revival of 1776.
Directed by Diane Paulus, the production is scheduled to first play at the American Repertory Theatre at Harvard University (where Paulus is artistic director) before heading to the American Airlines Theatre courtesy of Roundabout Theatre Company. The Broadway opening is projected for spring 2021.
A release states that Mikel has been cast as John Hancock in the revival, which gives Peter Stone and Sherman Edwards' musical a contemporary twist through multiple representations of gender, race, and ethnicity to "more broadly reflect today's America, our America." Traditionally, the script calls for 25 men and only 2 women.
The cast has reportedly begun rehearsing through Zoom, with A.R.T. confirming that the musical will play as a part of its 2020/21 season (though exact dates have not been announced).
"I have been overwhelmed by the compassion, humanity, and unstoppable creativity expressed by our company of 1776, who have come together from across the country for our virtual workshop," says Paulus in the release. "Their resilience has infused me with hope for the future of theater amid this time of uncertainty.
"As we embark on our journey together on this production, we find ourselves reckoning with our country's history, re-examining the pivotal moment of our nation's founding portrayed in 1776 — the writing of the Declaration of Independence, a 'promissory note,' that, in Martin Luther King's words 'America has defaulted on.'
"As artists, we are embracing our American history as a human predicament and are committed to the process of learning from the past in order to move forward together."
Mikel was last seen as Marmie in Dallas Theater Center's production of Little Women, which was adapted by Kate Hamill from Louisa May Alcott's novel.