The first production photos from Copperfield!, the new musical based on the Charles Dickens novel, are out. The show is in previews at The Duke on 42nd Street and opens on Monday, October 19, for a limited run through December 6.
Jeffrey Scharf wrote the book, music and lyrics. Gabriel Barre directs and choreographs; his credits include Amazing Grace on Broadway and the original Off-Broadway production of Andrew Lippa’s The Wild Party. The company is made up of actor-musicians who play the score as well as act it.
Bobby Conte plays David Copperfield. He originated the role of Calogero in A Bronx Tale The Musical on Broadway and was in the Broadway revivals of Company and The Who’s Tommy. The cast also includes Amelia Cormack, Jed Feder, Calvin Knegten, Kent M. Lewis, Kara Mikula, Miyuki Miyagi, Nancy O’Connor, Dan Piering, Aaron Michael Ray, Will Reynolds, Owen Squire Smith, Alexander Sovronsky, Erica Spyres, Andy Taylor, Cathryn Wake, Tatiana Wechsler and Henry Witcher.
Dickens called David Copperfield his favorite of his novels, and it is the one closest to his own life. The musical follows David from a hard childhood, under a cruel stepfather, a brutal schoolmaster and long days in a London factory, to an adult life that brings both success and loss. Along the way he meets Aunt Betsey Trotwood, the Peggotty family, Mr. Micawber, Agnes Wickfield, Steerforth, Dora Spenlow and Uriah Heep.
Barre said the actor-musician staging made sense of the material as well as the music: “The cast are essentially a company of actor-musicians living within David’s imagination.” Scharf said his aim was “to celebrate the timeless power of Dickens’ story, while showcasing its hope, humor, and humanity.”
Scenic design is by Edward Pierce, costumes by Jen Caprio, lighting by Jeff Croiter, sound by Shannon Slaton, and hair and wigs by J. Jared Janas. Sonny Paladino did the orchestrations and arrangements, and Ashley Wren Collins is associate director and associate choreographer. Act Two Theatricals produces, with Davenport Theatrical Enterprises as executive producer.
The Duke on 42nd Street is at New 42 Studios, 229 West 42nd Street. Through October 18, performances are Tuesday to Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m., with an extra 2:30 p.m. matinee on October 17. From October 19, evening shows are at 7:30 p.m. on Monday and Wednesday to Saturday, with 2:30 p.m. matinees on Wednesday and Saturday and a 3 p.m. show on Sunday. Tickets for Copperfield! are on sale here.
