Equus Revival Will Arrive on Broadway in September 2008

By Andrew Gans
and John Nathan
November 15, 2007

The eagerly awaited revival of Equus, which was a hit at London's Gielgud Theatre, will arrive on Broadway at a Shubert theatre to be announced in September 2008.

According to a casting notice, the revival of the Peter Shaffer work will begin performances on Broadway Sept. 25, 2008, for a limited engagement through Feb. 8, 2009. The Shubert Organization and David Pugh, LLC will produce the Broadway run; Elizabeth I. McCann and Joey Parnes will be the show's general managers. Thea Sharrock, who directed the London company, will direct here as well; rehearsals begin Aug. 11.

The casting notice once again confirms that Daniel Radcliffe and Richard Griffiths — who played to sold-out crowds in the London revival — will reprise their work for Broadway audiences. Radcliffe will star as Alan Strang with Griffiths as Dr. Martin Dysart.

"Harry Potter" star Radcliffe made his West End leading-role debut in Shaffer's 1973 drama at London's Gielgud Theatre on Feb. 27 following previews that began Feb. 16. Radcliffe drew positive reviews from the London critics and lots of attention from gossip columnists because of the nude scene in which he bared all.

Radcliffe plays the disturbed adolescent Strang, an English stable boy who blinded six horses with a spike. Griffiths takes on the role of psychiatrist Dysart, who attempts to discover the source of Strang's psychosis. Shaffer based the play on a true story told to him by a friend.

Equus reunited Radcliffe and Griffiths, who appeared together in the "Harry Potter" movies. Equus producers David Pugh and Dafydd Rogers gave Radcliffe his first role in the West End as a celebrity guest in The Play What I Wrote.

The London production of Equus was designed by the play's original designer, John Napier.