Complete casting has been announced for the Broadway premiere of “Life of Pi.”
The new play is set to open at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre on Mar. 30. Previews will begin on Mar. 9. The production recently had its North American premiere at American Repertory Theater at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, from Dec. 4, 2022, through Jan. 29.
Joining from the original London production are Hiran Abeysekera, who will reprise his Olivier Award-winning performance as Pi, and Fred Davis and Scarlet Wilderink, who will reprise their Olivier-winning portrayals as part of the puppeteering team for the Royal Bengal tiger character Richard Parker.
The cast will also feature Brian Thomas Abraham as Cook/voice of Richard Parker, Rajesh Bose as Father, Avery Glymph as Father Martin/Russian Sailor/Rear Admiral Jackson, Mahira Kakkar as Nurse/Amma/Orange Juice, Kirstin Louie as Lulu Chen, Salma Qarnain as Mrs. Biology Kumar/Zaida Khan, Sathya Sridharan as Mamaji/Pandit-Ji, Daisuke Tsuji as Mr. Okamoto/Captain, Sonya Venugopal as Rani, with Nikki Calonge, Davis, Rowan Ian Seamus Magee, Jonathan David Martin, Betsy Rosen, Celia Mei Rubin, Wilderink and Andrew Wilson as Richard Parker. Mahnaz Damania, Jon Hoche, Usman Ali Mughal, Uma Paranjpe and David Shih round out the 24-member cast with Adi Dixit as the Pi alternate. Casting is by Stewart/Whitley.
As previously announced, the production is directed by Max Webster and features scenic and costume design by Tim Hatley, puppet and movement direction by Finn Caldwell, puppet design by Nick Barnes and Caldwell, video design by Andrzej Goulding, lighting design by Tim Lutkin, sound design by Carolyn Downing, original music by Andrew T Mackay and dramaturgy by Jack Bradley. Newly announced, wig design will be by David Brian Brown.
The play unfolds when a cargo ship sinks in the Pacific Ocean and its lone human survivor, Pi, finds himself stranded on a lifeboat with a hyena, a zebra, an orangutan and a Royal Bengal tiger. “Life of Pi” has been adapted by playwright Lolita Chakrabarti from Yann Martel’s best-selling novel and debuted at Wyndham’s Theatre in London’s West End. The novel was also adapted into an Oscar-winning film in 2012.
“Life of Pi” will be produced on Broadway by Simon Friend, Daryl Roth, Hal Luftig, Mark Gordon Pictures, Gavin Kalin, Hunter Arnold, Hall Smalberg Winkler, 42nd.club, Elizabeth Armstrong, Eilene Davidson, deRoy Shea Waxman, Federman Jenen Productions, Susan Gallin, Independent Presenters Network, John Gore Organization, Kuhn Dodani, Harriet Newman Leve, Anastasia Muravyeva, Mary Lu Roffe, Catherine Schreiber, American Repertory Theater and Sheffield Theatres. Aaron Lustbader and Hanna Osmolska will serve as executive producers.
