Drag artist Jinkx Monsoon will take on the role of Mary Todd Lincoln in the hit Broadway comedy “Oh, Mary!” for an eight-week run beginning Aug. 4. Monsoon, who is currently appearing as Ruth in “Pirates! The Penzance Musical” through July 27, joins the production just weeks after playwright and original star Cole Escola completed their acclaimed run on June 21.
Tituss Burgess, who previously played the role this spring, is now reprising it through August 2. Monsoon becomes the fourth performer to inhabit Escola’s unhinged, foul-mouthed, dim-witted reimagining of the 19th-century First Lady, following Escola, Emmy nominee Betty Gilpin, and Burgess. A deliriously campy farce set at the end of the Civil War, “Oh, Mary!” has been a breakout smash, repeatedly breaking box office records at the Lyceum Theatre since transferring from its sold-out Off-Broadway premiere.
“Happy to trade in one pair of bloomers for another,” Monsoon said in a statement, calling Oh, Mary! “one of the best, funniest, most energizing things I’ve seen in my life.”
Immersive ‘Phantom’ spectacle set for six-week run
He may have taken his final bow at the Majestic Theatre in 2023 after a 35-year reign on Broadway, but the Phantom of the Opera is not finished haunting New York. This summer, he resurfaces in “Masquerade,” a new immersive theatrical event set to take place at the former Lee’s Art Shop on 57th Street and Seventh Avenue in Midtown Manhattan. The production’s title evokes the dazzling masked ball from “Phantom,” a spectacle of disguise, deception, and suspended identity, and the show’s promotional materials lean into that same spirit of secrecy.
So far, very little information has been officially released: no cast, no creative team, and no clear indication of what the experience will entail. Instead, the show has teased its arrival through cryptic, in-character missives, a strict dress code (black, white, or silver attire with a masquerade mask), and scattered hints, such as newspaper-covered windows, mysterious dead drops, and coded messages on social media. Guests are warned not to wear high heels, as they will be navigating “secret catacombs and dark crannies.” To receive early access when tickets go on sale, prospective attendees must “sign the ledger” at MasqueradeNYC.com by June 30.
Jeff Ross Brings the Roast to Broadway in Solo Debut
Jeff Ross, the Emmy-nominated comedian long dubbed the “Roastmaster General,” will step into the Broadway spotlight this summer with “Take a Banana for the Ride,” an uncensored and unexpectedly personal solo show. Previews begin August 5 at the Nederlander Theatre for an eight-week run through September 29. Ross, best known for his scorched-earth celebrity roasts on Comedy Central, will trade the dais for the stage with a one-man theatrical event blending stand-up, storytelling, song, and live roasting of willing audience members. “Ever since my Aunt Bess took me to see Jackie Mason on Broadway, I’ve daydreamed about performing my own classy and uncensored one-man show,” Ross said in a statement. “I’m honored and excited by the opportunity to share my origin story of how I became the motherf***in’ Roastmaster General.”
