Sierra Boggess and Julie Benko On Bringing HARMONY To Broadway
Barry is BACK on Broadway. Barry Manilow and Bruce Sussman’s original new musical Harmony is gearing up to open this fall at the Barrymore Theatre.
Harmony tells the true story of the Comedian Harmonists, a comedic vocal group in the 1920s and ‘30s on the brink of stardom, attempting to navigate a world on the brink of war. The musical had a sold-out run downtown with National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, and now it heads to Broadway.
The company includes Chip Zien as Rabbi, Sierra Boggess as Mary, Julie Benko as Ruth, and the Comedian Harmonists Sean Bell, Danny Kornfeld, Zal Owen, Eric Peters, Blake Roman, and Steven Telsey, as well as Allison Semmes and Andrew O’Shanick. The ensemble of Harmony includes Zak Edwards, Dan Hoy, Bruce Landry, RhonniRose Mantilla, Daniel Z. Miller, Benjamin H. Moore, Matthew Mucha, Constantine Pappas, Kayleen Seidl, Kyla Stone, Bronwyn Tarboton, Kate Wesler, Stuart Zagnit, and Lee Zarrett.
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I sat down with Boggess and Benko on the set of Theatrely’s Fall 2023 Preview to chat about bringing this important story uptown to 47th Street.
“Broadway is the biggest place you can do theatre, right? So the fact that this story gets to be told in the biggest way possible is so wonderful. It is such a timely story and I am excited we get to level up with it,” said Boggess.
“First of all, I am thrilled I can still go to my favorite poke place on 8th Avenue now that my new theater is just five blocks down the street! But in all seriousness, I am so fortunate to be able to jump from one project to the next, both playing two very different Jewish women who lived at the exact same time! Fanny Brice even appears off-stage in Harmony which is so fun; I am excited to explore this new character in the same time period,” Benko said.
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Warren Carlyle will direct and choreograph the new musical. The creative team also includes Beowulf Boritt as scenic designer, Linda Cho & Ricky Lurie as costume designers, Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer as lighting designer, Dan Moses Schreier as sound designer, Batwin and Robin Productions as media designers, Tom Watson as wig & hair designer, John O’Neill as music director, Michael Aarons as music coordinator, and Doug Walter as orchestrator.
Harmony begins performances on Wednesday, October 18, 2023 with an official opening night set for Monday, November 13, 2023 at the Barrymore Theatre on Broadway.
For tickets and more information, click here.
