Theater News

Head Over Heels, Featuring Songs of the Go-Go's, Is Headed to Broadway

Michael Mayer will direct a cast that includes Andrew Durand, Alexandra Socha, and ”RuPaul’s Drag Race”’s Peppermint.

Alexandra Socha will be part of the principal cast of the musical Head Over Heels, which features the music of the Go-Go's.
Alexandra Socha will be part of the principal cast of the musical Head Over Heels, which features the music of the Go-Go's.
(© David Gordon)

Head Over Heels, a new musical comedy featuring the songs of the Go-Go's, will open on Broadway at the Hudson Theatre on Thursday, July 26, with previews beginning on Saturday, June 23. Before its Broadway premiere, the musical will play a limited engagement at San Francisco's Curran Theatre, April 10-May 6, with opening night set for Wednesday, April 18.

Based on Sir Philip Sidney's The Arcadia, Head Over Heels is described as "an unpredictable, Elizabethan romp about a royal family that must prevent an oracle's prophecy of doom. In order to save their beloved kingdom, the family embarks on an extravagant journey wrought with mistaken identities, jealous lovers, sexual awakening, scandal and self-discovery, where everything (and everyone) is not quite what it seems."

Hit songs from the Go-Go's include "We Got the Beat," "Get Up and Go," "Cool Jerk," "Vacation," "Our Lips Are Sealed," "Lust to Love," "Head Over Heels," and the Belinda Carlisle solo hits "Mad About You" and "Heaven Is a Place on Earth."

Under the direction of Michael Mayer, Head Over Heels will feature musical supervision, orchestrations, and arrangements by Tom Kitt and choreography by Spencer Liff. The musical features an original book by Jeff Whitty and is adapted by James Magruder. The rest of the creative team includes Julian Crouch (scenic and puppet design), Arianne Phillips (costume design), Kevin Adams (lighting design), Kai Harada (sound design), and Andrew Lazarow (projections design), with Kimberly Grigsby as musical director and Lisa Iacucci as production stage manager.

Rick Ferrari, Donovan Leitch, Christine Russell, Gwyneth Paltrow, Louise Gund, Hunter Arnold, Tom Kirdahy, and Jordan Roth are the producers. Carole Shorenstein Hays, Scott Sigman, Robert Kravis, Vikram Chatwal, Carrie Clifford, the John Gore Organization, and Mara Sandler are coproducers, with Julie Boardman associate producer and 101 Productions Ltd. executive producer.

The principal cast features Andrew Durand (Spring Awakening), Taylor Iman Jones (Groundhog Day), Jeremy Kushnier, Bonnie Milligan, Tom Alan Robbins (The Lion King), Alexandra Socha (Spring Awakening), and Rachel York (Disaster!). Also part of the cast is Peppermint, the RuPaul's Drag Race star who will be the first trans woman to create a principal role on Broadway with this production. The ensemble will include Sharon Catherine Brown, Yurel Echezarreta, Lisa Finegold, Brian Flores, Ari Groover, Tanya Haglund, Arica Jackson, Gregory Liles, Gavin Lodge, Samantha Pollino, Justin Prescott, Tanner Ray Wilson, and Ricardo Zayas.

For tickets to the Broadway production, click here.

For tickets to the San Francisco production, click here.