In 1934, during the height of the Great Depression, everyone was searching for something. In a time-weathered guesthouse Minnesota, an unlikely group of strangers comes together with little other than hope and a need to survive in common.
Only a song can shake off the dust for one group of wayward souls-and old dreams may hold the promise of new beginnings. As they come in and out of each other's lives, their stories awaken with passion, fury and extraordinary beauty. Reimagining the music of Bob Dylan as roof-raising ensemble pieces and soul-stirring solos, playwright and director Conor McPherson weaves this story of faith, family, heartbreak, and love.
Far closer to Eugene O'Neill's 'The Iceman Cometh' than 'Mamma Mia!,' the beguiling and beautiful new show at the Belasco Theatre is hardly a Bob Dylan jukebox musical. Sure, the score for 'Girl From the North Country,' an ensemble piece that showcases Mare Winningham in an extraordinarily intense and musically compelling performance, is comprised of more than 20 of the legendary protest-warbler's iconic compositions, ranging from 'Slow Train' to 'Like a Rolling Stone' and 'All Along the Watchtower' to 'Forever Young.'
It's probably a lost cause trying to fit every chosen song into a plot-worthy moment in the show. It doesn't make dramatic sense that Elizabeth should be the soloist on 'Like a Rolling Stone' and 'Forever Young.' But Winningham puts so much heart into both songs that she can leave you trembling. And she, more than anyone else in the cast, seems to understand that Dylan's narrative lyrics, mainly written in the 1960s and 70s, express a sense of existential detachment, a yearning for human connection that reflect the uncertainties of 1930s America.
| 2017 | West End |
Original West End Production West End |
| 2017 | West End |
West End Transfer Production West End |
| 2018 | Off-Broadway |
Public Theater North American Premiere Off-Broadway |
| 2019 | West End |
West End Return Engagement West End |
| 2022 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
| 2023 | US Tour |
North American Tour US Tour |
| 2025 | West End |
West End |
| Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Book of a Musical | Conor McPherson |
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Direction of a Musical | Conor McPherson |
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Girl From The North Country |
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Orchestrations | Simon Hale |
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical | Jeannette Bayardelle |
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical | Mare Winningham |
| 2022 | Tony Awards | Best Sound Design of a Musical | Simon Baker |
| 2020 | Drama League Awards | Outstanding Production of a Musical | Girl from the North Country |
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