See an Exclusive First Look at Broadway's Life of Pi as Writer Raves She 'Never Imagined This'
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Piscine Molitor "Pi" Patel is finally taking the stage on the Great White Way.
In PEOPLE's exclusive first-look photos from the Broadway run of Life of Pi — currently playing at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre ahead of its official March 30 opening night — Hiran Abeysekera revives his Olivier Award-winning performance as the eponymous Pi.
Abeysekera previously starred in the production in London's West End.
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Lolita Chakrabarti, who wrote the theatrical adaptation that opened on the West End in 2021, tells PEOPLE she "never imagined this," as she prepares for her version to debut on Broadway.
"I began writing this play with vivid ideas and characters in my head, and I followed them all until the story emerged," says Chakrabarti. "To see those ideas and relationships realized by our amazing creative team has been a wonderful experience."
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Based on the 2001 novel by Yann Martel, Life of Pi tells the story of an Indian teenager who survives 227 days on a lifeboat after a shipwreck, leaving him stranded in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with a hyena, a zebra, an orangutan, and a 450-lb. Royal Bengal tiger named Richard Parker.
The book, which has sold more than 15 million copies worldwide, was first adapted into a play by Keith Robinson in England back in 2003 before touring the U.K. until 2007. Robinson later directed another version in 2008.
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Chakrabarti's version debuted at Sheffield's Crucible Theatre in 2019 before opening at Wyndham's Theatre on the West End in November 2021. The production won five Olivier Awards, including best new play.
In addition to writer Chakrabarti and star Abeysekera, the Broadway run will also bring back Fred Davis and Scarlet Wilderink as puppeteers for Richard, who will be voiced by Brian Thomas Abraham. The team's performance previously won the Olivier Award for best supporting actor.
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The Broadway cast also includes Rajesh Bose as Father, Avery Glymph as Father Martin/Russian Sailor/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 and Sonya Venugopal as Rani.
Rounding out the cast are Nikki Calonge, Rowan Ian Seamus Magee, Jonathan David Martin, Betsy Rosen, Celia Mei Rubin, Andrew Wilson, Mahnaz Damania, Jon Hoche, Usman Ali Mughal, Uma Paranjpe, David Shih and Adi Dixit.
Life of Pi was also adapted into a 2012 film by director Ang Lee, whose work on the adaptation earned him an Academy Award for Best Director. The movie won three other Oscars and was nominated for another seven, including Best Picture.
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Last month, actor Abeysekera shared a video on Instagram in which he looked up at a digital billboard advertising the show in Times Square, simply captioning the post: "Broadway baby!" As he looked up at the display, he said, "That's crazy."
He followed up that post with a photo in front of the marquee at the Schoenfeld Theatre, writing: "Sheffield to Schoenfield."
Life of Pi currently plays at Broadway's Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre, with opening night set for March 30. For more information and tickets, visit LifeofPiBway.com.
