“The Full Monty” is out. “Rhinoceros” is in.
In a season-altering switcheroo, Roundabout Theater Company, one of the four nonprofit organizations with Broadway houses, announced on Thursday that it was postponing a large-scale musical revival of “The Full Monty” and replacing it with a classic absurdist drama, Eugène Ionesco’s “Rhinoceros.”
“The Full Monty,” of course, would have featured naked men. “Rhinoceros,” instead, will feature men (and women) as rhinoceroses. Also, it will feature three well-known actors: John Turturro, Tony Shalhoub and Tatiana Maslany.
Roundabout cited “cast availability” in explaining the change, and said it would provide information at a later date about rescheduling “The Full Monty.”
Here’s what we know so far:
When is this happening?
Next spring. “The Full Monty” was scheduled to open on April 25 and was poised to be the final opening of the current Broadway season. Now its spot, at the Todd Haimes Theater, will be taken by “Rhinoceros,” which is set to open that night after beginning previews on April 7. The run is limited and scheduled to end June 13.
What is ‘Rhinoceros’?
The 1959 play is about a French town whose inhabitants are turning into rhinoceroses. It explores the perils of conformity and is often viewed as a commentary on fascism.
The play was staged on Broadway in 1961, starring Zero Mostel and Eli Wallach.
This latest production began its life at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, Mass., where it ran in August and September, starring Paul Giamatti alongside Turturro and Maslany.
Who is involved?
The production is directed by Diane Paulus, the artistic director of the Harvard-affiliated American Repertory Theater. She is a Broadway veteran who won a Tony Award in 2013 for directing a revival of “Pippin,” directed a Tony-winning revival of “Hair,” and also directed “Waitress” and “Jagged Little Pill.” Her production of “Masquerade,” an immersive reimagining of “The Phantom of the Opera,” is running Off Broadway.
The three lead actors, best known for film and TV work, all have Broadway experience. Shalhoub has appeared in nine Broadway shows; he is a four-time Tony nominee and in 2018 won the Tony for best leading actor in a musical for “The Band’s Visit.” Maslany starred in the Broadway plays “Network” and “Grey House.” And Turturro starred in “Life x 3” in 2003; he was an understudy and replacement performer in a “Death of a Salesman” revival, and later directed a production of three short comedies called “Relatively Speaking.” He also has multiple Off Broadway stage credits.
What does this mean for the Broadway season?
This change deepens Broadway’s recent tilt toward plays: As musicals have become more costly to stage, producers and presenters have shifted programming toward short-run plays, often with famous names in the cast, because such shows are less expensive to produce and more likely to earn a profit.
Four musical revivals remain this season, including “The Fantasticks,” which begins previews next week, and three that are scheduled to open early next year: “Evita,” “The Sound of Music” and “Damn Yankees.”
At least six new musicals are expected to open on Broadway this season — “Wanted” and “Galileo” later this year, followed by “Dolly,” “Purple Rain,” “Paddington” and “Warriors” early next year. Another musical, “Dirty Dancing,” is also coming, but it is unclear whether it will be considered a new musical or a revival, because versions of it have been touring for years.
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