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Water For Elephants Closing on Broadway

Drew Janine, ,
Water For Elephants Closing on Broadway
The fantastic show Water For Elephants currently on Broadway has announced when they will take their final bows. The show opened in spring of this year with previews beginning in late February. However, it made its world premiere much further south in Atlanta at the Alliance Theatre in June last year.

Although the show was nominated for seven Tony Awards including one for Best Musical, rising costs of producing shows and keeping them open on the famous street in New York seem to be causing closures faster than fans would like. Like several other shows on Broadway at the moment, the show is based on the novel by Sara Gruen.

Water For Elephants Closing on Broadway

The last curtain call will be on 8 December this year for this great show depicting a man running away with the circus when he was younger, uncertain where this journey would take him. He quickly finds himself in love with his new life and everything that he finds within it: the curiosities of the circus. Beyond his wildest dreams the lead, played by Kyle Selig, reminisces as an older man thinking back on this time in his younger years. He, and the audience, are reminded that life begins when you decide not at a certain age. 

Water For Elephants Closing on Broadway

The show has a run time of 2 hours and 40 minutes with one intermission and is recommended for audiences age 8 and above. The aerial stunts and puppetry resembling a travelling circus portray a fantastic show to amaze everyone. Even though Water For Elephants has announced its closing on Broadway, the show is still set to begin its first national tour in Baltimore, Maryland autumn next year. Unfortunately, fans of the show are sceptical if it will be able to maintain touring due to costs associated with being on the road as the main show did not last its first year on Broadway even with high praise. 

The cast and creative team currently include Kyle Selig as Jacob along with his co-star Isabella McCalla who reprised her role as Marlena in the show after the world premiere in Atlanta. Gregg Edelman, perhaps best known for his portrayal of Clifford Bradshaw in Cabaret, plays Mr. Jankowski. Paul Alexander Nolan brings August to life. The amazing puppetry seen throughout the show is thanks to JR Goodman, Camille Labarre and Rey Wetmore. The circus design that audiences fell in awe with are from the mind of Shana Carroll who worked alongside Jesse Robb to choreograph the scenes. The sound design was done by Walter Trarbach who is best known for his work on Jesus Christ Superstar and Spongebob Squarepants the Musical. Fans will recognise the work of the lighting designer, Badley King, who is best known for Hadestown. The costumes were accomplished by Tony nominated designer David Reynoso with his designs featured internationally. The scenic work that welcomes audiences into the world of the circus is by Takeshi Kata who has worked on over 150 productions globally.

 

All photos from Water For Elephants Instagram Page.

Drew Janine
Live Sound Engineer -EUROPE
Janine has always been a part of music and performing. The first show that inspired her to go into theatre was the Velveteen Rabbit which she saw as a child, and Drew works to keep that magic alive as working behind the scenes in theatre as a live sound engineer. When Drew was accepted into an internship program for audio engineering at a recording studio, she jumped at the opportunity. That was at the start of 2020 and so much has happened since then, both in her career and in the world. Since then, Drew has taken several opportunities to work at recording studios, concerts, festivals, and even large theatres while spending time on tour across the North American continent and Europe. Drew’s favourite by far though has been the chance to work on Broadway and West End shows, as this was a dream come true. Drew is honoured to get to share these experiences from being inside the entertainment industry and hopes to inspire others to continue working in theatre.

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Drew Janine

Janine has always been a part of music and performing. The first show that inspired her to go into theatre was the Velveteen Rabbit which she saw as a child, and Drew works to keep that magic alive as working behind the scenes in theatre as a live sound engineer. When Drew was accepted into an internship program for audio engineering at a recording studio, she jumped at the opportunity. That was at the start of 2020 and so much has happened since then, both in her career and in the world. Since then, Drew has taken several opportunities to work at recording studios, concerts, festivals, and even large theatres while spending time on tour across the North American continent and Europe. Drew’s favourite by far though has been the chance to work on Broadway and West End shows, as this was a dream come true. Drew is honoured to get to share these experiences from being inside the entertainment industry and hopes to inspire others to continue working in theatre.