Michael R. Jackson's Pulitzer Prize-winning, blisteringly funny masterwork exposes the heart and soul of a young artist grappling with desires, identity, and instincts he both loves and loathes. Hell-bent on breaking free of his own self-perception, Usher wrestles with the thoughts in his head, brought to life on stage by a hilarious, straight-shooting ensemble. Bold and heartfelt in its truth-telling, A STRANGE LOOP is the big, Black, and queer-ass Great American Musical for all.
I never thought I'd see anything on Broadway quite like 'A Strange Loop,' Michael R. Jackson's Pulitzer Prize-winning musical that probes the inner reality of a 26-year-old Black, queer artist who's trying against the odds to transform his alienation into art. For much of this triumphant, emotionally lacerating show, which had its official opening Tuesday at the Lyceum Theatre, I sat with my mouth agape, astonished and grateful that something so brutally honest and rigorously constructed had finally broken through to a Broadway stage.
In spite of inventive touches, satirical humor, fluid production values, and songs full of both spark and sensitivity, 'A Strange Loop' ultimately falls victim to the perils of its own design, becoming so messy, whiny, confrontational, sexually explicit, and theoretical that it will probably turn off many theatergoers while invigorating and thrilling plenty of others.
| 2019 | Off-Broadway |
Playwrights Horizons World Premiere Off-Broadway |
| 2020 |
Woolly Mammoth Theatre Production |
|
| 2022 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
| 2023 | West End |
West End |
| Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Musical | Jaquel Spivey |
| 2022 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Awards | L Morgan Lee |
| 2022 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Awards | Jaquel Spivey |
| 2022 | Drama League Awards | Outstanding Production of a Musical | A Strange Loop |
| 2022 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Musical | Jaquel Spivey |
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Book of a Musical | Michael R. Jackson |
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Direction of a Musical | Stephen Brackett |
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Lighting Design of a Musical | Jen Schriever |
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | A Strange Loop |
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Orchestrations | Charlie Rosen |
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre | Michael R. Jackson |
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre | Michael R. Jackson |
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical | John-Andrew Morrison |
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical | Jaquel Spivey |
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical | L Morgan Lee |
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Scenic Design of a Musical | Arnulfo Maldonado |
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Sound Design of a Musical | Drew Levy |
| 2021 | Theatre World Awards | Theatre World Awards | Jaquel Spivey |
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