THE PIANIST, based on the memoir by Wladyslaw Szpilman, is tautly written by prize-winning Playwright/Director Emily Mann, with a haunting score by internationally lauded concert pianist Iris Hond.
The set design by Tony-winner Beowulf Boritt will emphasize a stunning yet simple concept, which, in tandem with striking lighting and cutting edge sound design, will make THE PIANIST a vivid, lived and shared experience of rare and lasting power.
In June 2022, THE PIANIST had an intensive workshop at Manhattan’s Open Jar Studios to polish the script, create a distinctive “movement language” for the piece, and enhance the integration of the score and sound design with cutting edge immersive surround-sound technology that enthralled the audience in the story:
THE PIANIST had its world premiere at George Street Playhouse this autumn, from 9/26-10/22.
The Producers
GORGEOUS
ENTERTAINMENT
Project History
THE PIANIST began its development at The McCarter Theatre Centre, where Emily served as Artistic Director and Resident playwright from 1990–2020, and which was honored by the Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre during her tenure.
THE PIANIST was first presented in 2017 as a reading at the McCarter. It was decided to augment the innate power of the piece with a piano score, and in 2018, concert sensation Iris Hond was retained as composer. That same year, THE PIANIST received a music and sound design workshop at The McCarter, where the score was integrated with beginnings of the complex, layered sound effects that Emily calls “a key character in the drama.”
McCarter Theater, Princeton, NJ
Robin de Levita Productions, Gorgeous Entertainment, and Wolk Transfer Company are the lead producers of THE PIANIST. Between them, they have brought URINETOWN, TITANIC, 42nd STREET, BIG RIVER, PACIFIC OVERTURES, PRINCE OF BROADWAY, and the upcoming THE KARATE KID to Broadway.
The Producers believe the time is alarmingly right for THE PIANIST, and beyond raising the funds to stage the play, they are committed to supporting it with compelling education programming to keep the lessons of the Holocaust alive and meaningful to new generations.
And they are further committed, beyond a regional theater and/or Broadway premiere, to promoting productions of THE PIANIST in theaters across the country and around the world. They believe THE PIANIST will become a treasured perennial in the canon of American theater.
In 2020, Tony-winner Santino Fontana portrayed Wladyslaw Szpilman in a Zoom reading, which demonstrated the impact of the material even in a virtual setting. Watch an excerpt here.
Special thanks to Santino for portraying Wladyslaw at our live 2022 reading as well, at Open Jar Studios.
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Emily Mann with the cast
of the 2022 workshop presentation
at Open Jar Studios, Manhattan
The 2022 June workshop,
presented with special lighting
and immersive surround-sound.