Is 'Beetlejuice' coming back to Broadway?!?!
(Photo: Sara Kruwich)
Enough of you might have said “Beetlejuice” three times because the word is that the Tony-nominated Best Musical may be headed back to Broadway.
According to the “What’s Up Broadway?” podcast, hosts Ayanna Prescod and Christian Lewis announced a “hot tip” that the musical will be reopening on Broadway in March of 2022 and already has a theatre set.
While no official announcement has been made, many of the show’s fans will be elated to know it might be coming back, especially after its controversial closing. We’re big fans of the show, and we’ve interviewed cast members during the initial show’s run. We hope this news is true!
Beetlejuice is a musical with music and lyrics by Eddie Perfect and a book by Scott Brown and Anthony King. It is based on the 1988 film of the same name. The story concerns a deceased couple who try to haunt the new inhabitants of their former home and call for help from a devious bio-exorcist ghost named Betelgeuse (pronounced "Beetlejuice"), who is summoned by saying his name three times. One of the new inhabitants is a young girl, Lydia, who is dealing with her mother's death and her neglectful father.
The musical had a tryout at the National Theatre, Washington, D.C. in October 2018, prior to opening on Broadway at the Winter Garden Theatre on April 25, 2019. It is produced by Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures (a unit of franchise owner Warner Bros.). Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the show played its final performance at the Winter Garden on March 10, 2020.
The show was nominated for 8 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical for Alex Brightman in the title role, and Best Set Design for a Musical for David Korins.
The show also just opened in Seoul, South Korea, at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in July after a delayed opening due to technical difficulties.
We will update this piece as more information becomes available. You can listen to “What’s Up Broadway” on the Broadway Podcast Network.