ANNOUNCING THE CAST OF NATASHA, PIERRE & THE GREAT COMET OF 1812 AT TORONTO'S ROYAL ALEXANDRA THEATRE
For Immediate Release
Media Contact: John Karastamatis, Sue Toth, Erin Nantais
THE SMASH-HIT MUSICAL OF THE 2023/24 TORONTO THEATRE SEASON TRANSFERS TO THE ROYAL ALEXANDRA THEATRE FOR A SUMMER 2025 ENGAGEMENT JULY 15 – AUGUST 24, 2025
TICKETS GO ON SALE DECEMBER 13, 2024
The Crow’s Theatre and The Musical Stage Company’s co-production of Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 by Dave Malloy was a highlight of the 2023-24 Toronto theatre season, playing to sold-out houses for a record-breaking 16-week run at Streetcar Crowsnest.
Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 is the seventh show in the Mirvish 2024/25 main season and will play the historic Royal Alexandra Theatre beginning performances on July 15, 2025, through August 24, 2025. Tickets will be available at 10AM on Friday December 13 at mirvish.com or by calling 1.800.461.3333.
The highly lauded original cast who return for the Royal Alex engagement includes Hailey Gillis (Ghost Quartet, Crow’s Theatre) as Natasha and Evan Buliung (Fun Home, The Musical Stage Company and Mirvish Productions) as Pierre, plus Divine Brown (The Secret Chord: A Leonard Cohen Experience, Soulpepper), Rita Dottor (Oliver!, U.S. First National Tour), Donna Garner (Once, Mirvish Productions), George Krissa (The Holiday Sitter, Hallmark Movies), Lawrence Libor (Maggie, Charlottetown Festival), Marcus Nance (Baz Luhrmann’s La Bohème, Broadway), Heeyun Park 박희윤 (La Bête, Talk is Free Theatre), Andrew Penner (Ghost Quartet, Crow’s Theatre), Louise Pitre (Mamma Mia, Mirvish Productions and Broadway), and Brendan Wall (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Mirvish Productions). Tess Benger (Titaníque, Segal Centre/Mirvish Productions), Andrew Broderick (You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown, Stratford Fest), Janelle Cooper (The Color Purple, Neptune/Citadel/Royal Manitoba), Tyler Pearse (The Wizard of Oz, Canadian Stage), and Vanessa Sears (Kinky Boots, Mirvish Productions) join the original cast for the 2025 engagement at the Royal Alexandra Theatre.
★★★★ “MUSICAL THEATRE AT ITS BEST” - Toronto Star
“Had me in tears with its bittersweet beauty. You won’t want to miss it.” - The Globe and Mail
"An exhilarating work of beauty, the production is expansive, immersive and raucous.” - Next Magazine
“STUNNING. Bold, daring and pulsing with emotion.” - The Slotkin Letter
“I saw The Great Comet at Crow’s soon after it opened,” explains David Mirvish. “As did many of our staff. Like everyone else who has seen this show, we were enchanted. Chris Abraham has directed a superb telling of Dave Malloy’s unique and wonderful musical with a cast of some of Canada’s finest musical theatre actors and musicians. We are thrilled, delighted and honoured to be presenting it at the Royal Alex.”
Chris Abraham says: “We can’t think of a more thrilling next step in the journey of our production, than to bring The Great Comet to the Royal Alex next summer. It’s truly Canada’s most iconic and beloved Edwardian theatre, where many theatrical legends have performed. It will give us a gorgeous playground to bring new life to the immersive charm and powerhouse performances that Toronto audiences have so passionately embraced at Crow’s Theatre. The opportunity to expand our ensemble, orchestra, and enhance Julie Fox and Josh Quinlan’s spectacularly immersive design, will bring new surprises for audiences, especially the fans that have been coming back multiple times to see the show in record numbers.”
“We are thrilled to bring The Great Comet to an even broader audience, giving thousands of people the chance to take part in this once-in-a-lifetime experience and for its most ardent fans to revisit it at its new home with Mirvish Productions.” says Ray Hogg, Artistic Director of The Musical Stage Company. “This production is a testament to the power of Toronto's voracious theatre-lovers, and we look forward to bringing its beautiful chaos, magic and world-class talent back to the stage at the Royal Alex.”
About The Musical
From the celebrated and award-winning composer Dave Malloy comes Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812, an electropop musical based on a scandalous slice of Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace. Young and impulsive, Natasha arrives in Moscow to await the return of her fiancé, Prince Andrey, from the front lines of Napoleon’s attempt to invade Russia. When she falls under the spell of Moscow society’s notorious playboy, the dashing rogue Anatole, it is up to Pierre, a family friend in the middle of an existential crisis, to pick up the pieces of Natasha’s shattered reputation and offer her hope and redemption.
Praised as “both the most innovative and the best new musical to open on Broadway since Hamilton” by The New York Times and “one of the decade’s best musicals” by Time Out, The Great Comet premiered at Ars Nova in New York City, played a successful off-Broadway transfer and then an acclaimed run on Broadway. The winner of two Tony Awards, three Lucille Lortel Awards, the Off-Broadway Alliance Award for Best New Musical, a Special Obie Citation, and the Richard Rodgers Award for Musical Theatre, this audacious work is recognized for expanding the possibilities of musical theatre with its daring score and bold storytelling.
About The Production
Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 features music, lyrics, book & orchestrations by Dave Malloy, adapted from the novel, War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy.
The Crow’s Theatre and The Musical Stage Company Co-Production is directed by Chris Abraham, choreography by Ray Hogg, music direction by Ryan deSouza.