‘Topdog/Underdog’ Returning To Broadway With Corey Hawkins & Yahya Abdul-Mateen II

Greg Evans
·2 min read
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Suzan-Lori Parks’ Topdog/Underdog, winner of the 2002 Pulitzer Prize, will return to Broadway this fall in a 20th anniversary production directed by Kenny Leon and starring In the Heights‘ Corey Hawkins and Watchmen‘s Yahya Abdul-Mateen II.

The strictly limited 16-week engagement will begin previews on Tuesday, September 27, at Broadway’s John Golden Theatre. The production officially will open on Thursday, October 20.

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Tickets are set to go on sale Monday, June 20, Juneteenth National Independence Day.

The production is being produced by David Stone, LaChanze, Rashad V. Chambers, Marc Platt, Debra Martin Chase, and the Shubert Organization.

Hawkins and Abdul-Mateen II will play brothers Lincoln and Booth, respectively, in Parks’ “darkly comic fable of brotherly love and family identity.” Topdog/Underdog tells the story of the two brothers Lincoln and Booth — named as a joke by their father — who are haunted by the past and their obsession with three-card monte, the street con game.

“I’m so blessed that Topdog is back on Broadway,” said Parks in a statement. “What a beautiful opportunity to share this work with new audiences. And, wow, how many writers get to be here for a Broadway revival of their work? I’m grateful and thrilled. And doing the show with Kenny, Yahya and Corey — that’s icing on the gravy, baby!”

The production will feature scenic design by Arnulfo Maldonado, costume design by Dede Ayite, lighting design by Allen Lee Hughes and sound design by Justin Ellington.

Parks is the first Black woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. In 2018, Topdog/Underdog was named “The Greatest American Play of the Past 25 Years” by The New York Times.

Hawkins, a Tony nominee for his 2017 performance in John Guare’s Six Degrees of Separation, made his Broadway debut as Tybalt in David Leveaux’s revival of Romeo and Juliet opposite Orlando Bloom and Condola Rashad. He recently portrayed Macduff in Joel Coen’s The Tragedy of Macbeth, opposite Denzel Washington, Frances McDormand, and Brendan Gleeson, and also starred as Benny in Jon M. Chu’s feature film adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Tony Award-winning musical In The Heights. Other film credits include Straight Outta Compton, 6 Underground, Georgetown and BlacKkKlansman.

Abdul-Mateen is best known for his Emmy-winning performance as Cal Abar/Dr. Manhattan in HBO’s Watchmen. He recently starred in Michael Bay‘s Ambulance, opposite Jake Gyllenhaal; The Matrix Resurrections; and Candyman. Next up he will be reprising his role as Black Manta in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.

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