Producers pull plug on Audra McDonald’s ‘Gypsy,’ set to close next month

Joe Hofmann
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Even one of the most acclaimed shows on

Broadway

— the

Audra McDonald

-headlined “Gypsy — couldn’t shake the Tony curse.

Producers officially confirmed Wednesday night that the musical would shutter August 17.

Directed by

George C. Wolfe

and choreographed by

Camille A. Brown

, the production opened in December and is the sixth Broadway musical to announce its closing since the

2025 Tony Awards

were handed out in June. Nominated for five Tony Awards, including the Best Musical Revival prize, “Gypsy” shockingly won none, not even for six-time winner McDonald.

Co-starring Danny Burstein and Joy Woods, the show will have played 28 previews and 269 regular performances by the time its final curtain drops next month at the Majestic Theater.

“Gypsy” features a book by Arthur Laurents, music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim.

“[Director] George C. Wolfe’s exquisite production of Gypsy managed to both capture the full integrity of the original, without changing a word, and at the same time brought a historic new level of depth with his casting the magnificent Audra McDonald,” Laurents Estate rep

David Saint

said in the announcement.

“He shed a complex light of racial awareness on this quintessential American story, one that would make Arthur, the lifelong advocate for social justice, extremely proud.”

In his

glowing review

noting the first time Broadway has seen a predominantly Black cast for “Gypsy,” New York Daily News drama critic

Chris Jones

wrote: “Wolfe has managed to make a major statement in that he has directed a “Gypsy” for everybody and has extended the show outwards from its initial context and milieu, much as one might take a King Lear or a Hamlet out of England or Denmark.”

Joe Hofmann

Joe Hofmann

Joe Hofmann is a dedicated news reporter at Morris Sussex Sports. He exclusively covers sports and weather news and has a vast experience of 6 years as a news reporter. In free time, he can be found at local libraries.

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