“The Roommate” has been announced for a Broadway bow. Tony Award winner Patti LuPone and Golden Globe nominee Mia Farrow will star in the Broadway premiere of the 2015 play by Jen Silverman. Previews will begin on Aug. 29 ahead of a Sept. 12 opening at the Booth Theatre. Tony winner Jack O’Brien will direct and Tony winner Chris Harper will produce.
“The excitement for me, aside from bringing [these] two legends back to the stage, is the chance to introduce Broadway audiences to the remarkable talents of Jen Silverman,” said Harper in a statement. “Without a doubt, Jen is one of the most important emerging voices of this generation. Audiences are going to be surprised and delighted when they see what we have in store.”
LuPone is one of only a handful of people who have received eight or more Tony nominations for performance. She won the statuette for 1979’s “Evita,” as well as the 2008 revival of “Gypsy” and the 2021 revival of “Company” (which was also produced by Harper). One of the original members of the Acting Company, LuPone made her Main Stem debut in “The Three Sisters” as part of the company’s 1973-1974 Broadway repertory presentation. Other Broadway credits include the 1987 revival of “Anything Goes,” replacing in 1995’s “Master Class,” the 2005 mounting of “Sweeney Todd” and 2017’s “War Paint.” LuPone famously originated the role of Norma Desmond in the 1993 world premiere staging of “Sunset Boulevard” in London.
Farrow made her Broadway debut in 1979’s “Romantic Comedy.” Her other Main Stem credits include the 2014 revival of the two-hander “Love Letters” and providing a voiceover for the 1996 Stephen Sondheim-George Furth comedy thriller “Getting Away with Murder.” On the silver screen, Farrow appeared in 1968’s “Rosemary’s Baby,” 1969’s “John and Mary,” 1984’s “Broadway Danny Rose,” 1985’s “Purple Rose of Cairo” and 1990’s “Alice,” all of which earned her Golden Globe nominations. Farrow’s television work has spanned six decades; one of her earliest credits is playing Allison Mackenzie on the series “Peyton Place.” Farrow recently played Pearl Winslow on the 2022 Netflix series “The Watcher.”
“The Roommate” will mark the first Broadway production for Silverman, whose other works include “Spain,” which played a fall 2023 Off-Broadway run, and “Collective Rage: A Play in 5 Betties,” which was presented Off-Broadway in 2018. Their written work extends beyond theater, having published “The Island Dwellers: Stories” in 2018, the novel “We Play Ourselves” in 2021 and “There’s Going to Be Trouble” in 2024.
“‘The Roommate’ is funny, quirky and brilliantly written, and when I learned that Patti LuPone was interested in doing it, how could I resist?,” Farrow said in a statement. “She is, of course, a Broadway icon without parallel and we have been friends for decades. It is exciting to be returning to Broadway.”
“It’s always a big decision to return to the stage, and I certainly had no intention of being back on Broadway so fast,” commented LuPone. “But when I read the play and heard Mia was attached, it became the easiest decision of my life. I’ve always been a fan of Mia’s work and she is a treasured friend. We’re going to have a blast.”
Silverman’s play follows two roommates whose differing backgrounds shape their joint navigation of identity, morality and reinvention.
The creative team for “The Roommate” will include Tony-winning scenic and costume designer Bob Crowley, Tony-winning lighting designer Natasha Katz and Tony-nominated sound designer Mikaal Sulaiman.
Wagner Johnson Productions will serve as executive producers.
