Complete casting has been announced for the Broadway premiere of Prayer for the French Republic, written by Drama Desk Award winner Joshua Harmon and directed by Tony Award winner David Cromer at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre (261 West 47th Street). Performances will begin Tuesday, December 19, 2023, with opening night set for Tuesday, January 9, 2024.
Ethan Haberfield (Mary Poppins), Richard Masur (Lucky Guy, Democracy), Nael Nacer (The Orchard), and Daniel Oreskes (Oslo, “Only Murders in the Building”) join previously announced cast members Betsy Aidem (Leopoldstadt, Prayer at MTC), Francis Benhamou (Prayer at MTC – winner, 2022 Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Featured Performer in a Play and Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play), Ari Brand (Prayer at MTC), multi-Emmy Award nominee Anthony Edwards (“ER,” Top Gun), Molly Ranson (Prayer at MTC, Bad Jews), Nancy Robinette (Prayer at MTC), and Aria Shahghasemi (“Legacies”). The full company begins rehearsals for the production today.
The Prayer for the French Republic creative team includes Takeshi Kata (scenic design), Sarah Laux (costume design), Amith Chandrashaker (lighting design), Daniel Kluger (original music & sound design), J. Jared Janas (hair and makeup design), Gigi Buffington (vocal coach), Caparelliotis Casting, Kelly Gillespie (casting), and Richard Hodge (production stage manager).
Winner of the 2022 Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards for Best Play, Joshua Harmon’s Prayer for the French Republic bursts onto Broadway after MTC’s highly acclaimed extended, sold-out Off-Broadway run. In 1944, a Jewish couple in Paris desperately awaits news of their missing family. More than 70 years later, the couple’s great-grandchildren find themselves facing the same question as their ancestors: "Are we safe?" This celebrated work by the author of Bad Jews and Significant Other is about history, home and the effects of an ancient hatred. The New York Times calls it "thought-provoking, heart-wrenching and wickedly funny." Directing is David Cromer, a Tony Award® winner for The Band's Visit.