Stage Door Speed Round: ALMOST FAMOUS’ Casey Likes
Sometimes a star knows exactly what works—and Casey Likes fought hard to keep his favorite line in the new Broadway musical Almost Famous. Find out that answer, what’s in his dressing room, which artists he’s listening to before the show, and more in Theatrely’s latest edition of Stage Door Speed Round below.
With music by Tom Kitt with lyrics by Cameron Crowe and Kitt, Almost Famous is the latest stage adaptation to hit the Great White Way. Based on Crowe’s semi-autobiographical 2000 film of the same name, the story follows 15-year-old William Miller (Likes) as he pursues a career in music journalism. After convincing Rolling Stone magazine he’s older than he looks (he’s not), William hits the road with an up-and-coming band.
The musical also features Chris Wood as Russell Hammond, Anika Larsen as Elaine Miller, Solea Pfeiffer as Penny Lane, Drew Gehling as Jeff Bebe, and Rob Colletti as Lester Bangs.
The company also includes Matt Bittner, Chad Burris, Gerard Canonico, Julia Cassandra, Brandon Contreras, Jakeim Hart, Van Hughes, Jana Djenne Jackson, Katie Ladner, Danny Lindgren, Erica Mansfield, Alisa Melendez, Kevin Perdido, Andrew Poston, Emily Schultheis, Daniel Sovich, Libby Winters, and Matthew C. Yee.
Directed by Jeremy Herrin and choreographed by Sarah O’Gleby, the production features scenic design by Derek McLane, costume design by David Zinn, lighting design by Natasha Katz, sound design by Peter Hylenski, music supervision by Bryan Perri, vocal design by AnnMarie Milazzo, and hair, wig, and makeup design by Luc Verschueren.
Almost Famous opened November 3 at the Jacobs Theatre after beginning previews October 3. The musical had an out-of-town world premiere tryout in San Diego at The Old Globe in 2019.
(Video production by Brandon Schwartz)
