EXCLUSIVE: A two-day, invitation only reading of the in-development musical adaptation of John Berendt’s 1994 non-fiction novel Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil will feature recent Tony winner J. Harrison Ghee (Some Like It Hot) as Lady Chablis, the real-life transgender pioneer depicted in Berendt’s book.
Joining Ghee will be Steven Pasquale as Jim Williams (the role played by Kevin Spacey in the 1997 film adaptation), Austin Colby as Danny Hansford, Amber Gray as Minerva, Jennifer Laura Thompson as Vera Strong, Harriet Harris as Serena Barnes, Paul Nolan as Joe Odom, and Lance Roberts as Bobby Lewis.
The readings will be held in New York City on Thursday August 3 and Friday August 4.
The new musical is being directed by Rob Ashford (Frozen), written by Taylor Mac (A 24-Decade History of Popular Music), with music and lyrics by Jason Robert Brown (Parade) and choreography by Tanya Birl (Memphis the Musical) with associate choreography by J𝐨̅van Dansberry (Bob Fosse’s Dancin’).
The cast also features Shanel Bailey, Cameron Bond, Maya Bowles, Sean Donovan, Bailee Endebrock, Wes Garlington, Andre Terrell Malcolm, Miss Dirty Martini, Aaron James McKenzie, Grace McLean, Jessica Molaskey, Kayla Pecchioni, Ahmad Simmons, Allie Trim, and Cole Wachman.
A finalist for the 1995 Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction, Midnight… is the story of a socially prominent Savannah, Georgia, antiques dealer (Pasquale’s character) who was tried, and retried, for murder. The book was adapted for Clint Eastwood’s 1997 film in which the actual Lady Chablis portrayed herself. (She died in 2016.)
The new musical is being produced by Hal Luftig, Craig Haffner, and Sherry Wright.