The Ballad of Johnny and June at La Jolla Playhouse

Love is a burning thing

Country music royalty Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash remain to this day one of the most famous couples of the 20th Century. Created with the support of the family and told through the eyes of their son John Carter Cash, this new musical covers it all: their childhoods, their 1956 meeting at the Grand Ole Opry, the storied on-stage proposal in 1968, and the soaring highs and whiplash lows of fame, life on the road, addiction, arrests, controversies, marriage, family and devotion.

This is a whole-hearted and clear-eyed telling of one of the most iconic love stories in music history, complete with a soundtrack of beloved hits — I Walk the Line, Ring of Fire, Hey Porter, Jackson, I’ve Been Everywhere and many more.

Tony Award winner Des McAnuff has exhilarated audiences exploring the tumultuous journeys of legendary musicians in shows like Jersey Boys, The Who’s Tommy, and SUMMER: The Donna Summer Musical. In his long-awaited return to the Playhouse, this world premiere musical is sure to be another smash hit.

“You can go deeper and deeper and you still might never get to the bottom of what makes two people love each other, or stay together. Or come apart.” John Carter Cash, Johnny and June