He was wanted by the law, killed by a posse... and then his career really took off! Based on the “that can’t actually be true” story of bumbling bandit Elmer McCurdy and winner of three Best Musical awards (Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, NY Drama Critics’ Circle), this “rollicking, darkly hilarious, and thoroughly original musical will knock you dead!” (Time Out). Step right up and get tickets to the show Entertainment Weekly calls “a truly one-of-a-kind production, complete with a whole lot of laughs and a surprising amount of heart. It needs to be seen to be believed!”
The new musical is the darkly hilarious and wildly inventive musical about the bizarre true story of outlaw-turned-corpse-turned-celebrity Elmer McCurdy. As Elmer’s body finds even more outlandish adventures in death than it could have ever hoped for in life, the show explores fame, failure, and the meaning – or, utter meaninglessness – of legacy.
The overall result is a visual and aural delight, an affectionate dive into a forgotten chapter from the American past that recalls the having-fun-with-history energy of Bloody, Bloody Andrew Jackson, but in a way that’s both more grounded and less weighty. Dead Outlaw unearths the corpse of forgotten history — elevating a twisty little yarn into a bizarro-world elegy to how the American Dream can curdle into violence, cruelty, and casual indifference.
The musical takes an amusing leap into Vegas parody when coroner Thomas Noguchi (an electric Thom Sesma) is allowed to strut his medical examiner stuff. Ani Taj’s choreography, like every element of the production, makes the most of its minimalist means. Wanderingly weird, “Dead Outlaw” retains its off-Broadway cred at the Longacre. It’s a small show that creeps up on you, like a bizarre dream that’s hard to shake.
| 2024 | Off-Broadway |
Audible Off-Broadway Premiere Production Off-Broadway |
| 2025 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
| Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Drama League Awards | DISTINGUISHED PERFORMANCE | Andrew Durand |
| 2025 | Tony Awards | Best Book of a Musical | Itamar Moses |
| 2025 | Tony Awards | Best Direction of a Musical | David Cromer |
| 2025 | Tony Awards | BEST ORIGINAL SCORE (Music and/or Lyrics) | David Yazbek |
| 2025 | Tony Awards | BEST ORIGINAL SCORE (Music and/or Lyrics) | Erik Della Penna |
| 2025 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical | Jeb Brown |
| 2025 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical | Andrew Durand |
| 2025 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical | Julia Knitel |
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