Director

Operatic in its style, historical inspiration, and ambition, Titanic may have seemed unlikely material for musical drama when Yeston and Stone began work. But by the time the show premiered on Broadway in 1997, cultural fascination with the “ship of dreams” had reached a fever pitch, and Titanic received critical and audience acclaim, as well as five Tony Awards including Best Musical. Pared down to its essence and highlighting the majestic score, our Encores! production meditates on the nature of ambition and the human scale of this epic tragedy, focusing on the class divides both illuminated and transcended by the ship’s inexorable sinking.

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Titanic

New York City Center

This vivid, impressionistic portrait of legendary jazz pianist Jelly Roll Morton features Tony, Emmy, and Grammy winner Billy Porter (Pose) as the Chimney Man and Tony Award winner Joaquina Kalukango (Paradise Square) as Anita in a cast led by visionary director Robert O’Hara (A Raisin in the Sun). Written by George C. Wolfe (Shuffle Along) and set to Morton’s iconic music, Jelly’s Last Jam tells a fable of American history, legacy, and truth. In this production, original Broadway cast members Mamie Duncan-Gibbs, Stephanie Pope Lofgren, and Allison M. Williams, reprise their roles as the Hunnies.

Jelly's Last Jam

Direct from Broadway, the critically acclaimed and much beloved production of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s Tony® and Grammy®-winning triumph is playing a series of exclusive engagements across the U.S. with its Broadway stars to boot. Into the Woods features Montego Glover as The Witch, Stephanie J. Block as The Baker’s Wife Sebastian Arcelus as The Baker, Gavin Creel as Cinderella’s Prince/Wolf, and Krysta Rodriguez as Cinderella— all reprising their Broadway roles — in a production called “radiant” (Variety), “enchanting” (The Wall Street Journal), and “a priceless revival with a perfect cast” (The Washington Post). Directed by Lear deBessonet (Hercules), this theatrical event honors Sondheim’s legendary memory and his Broadway masterpiece like never before.

Into the Woods

Center Theatre Group

Direct from Broadway, the critically acclaimed and much beloved production of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s Tony®-winning triumph is coming to Buffalo with its Broadway stars to boot. Into the Woods features Montego Glover as The Witch, Stephanie J. Block as The Baker’s Wife, Sebastian Arcelus as The Baker, and Gavin Creel as Cinderella’s Prince/Wolf – all reprising their Broadway roles – in a production called “radiant” (Variety), “enchanting” (The Wall Street Journal), and “a priceless revival with a perfect cast” (The Washington Post). Directed by Lear deBessonet (Hercules), this theatrical event honors Sondheim’s legendary memory and his Broadway masterpiece like never before.

Shea's Performing Arts Center

Musical theater legend Sutton Foster (The Music Man) returns to the City Center stage as Princess Winnifred the Woebegone alongside Michael Urie (Ugly Betty) as Prince Dauntless in this beloved musical fairytale. Led by Tony-nominated director and Encores! Artistic Director Lear deBessonet (Into the Woods, Lionel Bart’s Oliver!) and with a new concert adaptation by Amy Sherman-Palladino (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), Once Upon a Mattress sets an unapologetic free spirit loose in a repressed kingdom, reveling in Winnifred’s ability to charm and transform with willpower, honesty, and a little bit of help from her friends.

Once Upon a Mattress

Musical theatre legend Sutton Foster (The Drowsy Chaperone, The Music Man) returns to the Ahmanson Theatre as Princess Winnifred in this beloved musical fairytale. Full of gloriously catchy melodies like “Shy” and “In a Little While,” this uproarious update of Hans Christian Andersen’s The Princess and the Pea promises both classic charms and new delights.

Lear deBessonet

Director

Events

Upcoming events

Dec 10, 2024 - Jan 5, 2025

Once Upon A Mattress · Center Theatre Group

Past events

12 - 23 Jun, 2024

Titanic · New York City Center

Feb 21 - Mar 3, 2024

Jelly's Last Jam · New York City Center

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