The Broadway production of Room has been postponed indefinitely.
The production, which was rehearsing with Adrienne Warren as the lead, will not go ahead following a “capitalization shortfall” and the withdrawal of a lead producer, the production said Thursday. The production, which was scheduled to begin April 3 at the James Earl Jones Theater, closed as of Thursday.
“During our rehearsals, we were informed by one of our main producers that for personal reasons they did not intend to fulfill their obligations to the production. Since being notified, the rest of the producing team have tried every avenue possible to keep the show on track, but the short timeline and economic shortfall created by this string of events has proven insurmountable.” said producer Hunter Arnold in the press release. “We are incredibly disappointed that we are unable to open this remarkable production at this time and are especially heartbroken for our incredibly talented cast and creative team who have been hard at work in the rehearsal room.”
A source close to the production confirmed that the closure was due to the withdrawal of a producer and a funding shortfall, not funding issues related to the Sunday closure of Signature Bank, which works with many Broadway productions. However, the bank’s seizure by regulators this week led to some delays in seeing the availability of funds, the source said.
Production would be capitalized for up to $7 million, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The play was adapted for the stage by Emma Donoghue, who wrote the original novel and Oscar-nominated screenplay. The stage production features songs and music by Scottish songwriters Kathryn Joseph and Cora Bissett, who was also brought in to direct. The show had its world premiere in 2017 at the Theater Royal Stratford East in London and had subsequent productions in Ireland, Scotland and Ontario.
Ephraim Sykes (Hamilton, Is not too proud: the life and times of the temptations) will also star in the Broadway production, alongside Kate Burton (Gray’s Anatomyy), in a cast of 10.
“We are honored to share the story of Room since its world premiere in London in 2017 and subsequent productions in Dublin, Scotland and Ontario. We truly believe that today’s disappointing news will not be the end Room on stage,” said producers Sam Julyan and James Yeoburn.
All purchased tickets will be refunded.
It is rare, but not without precedent, for a Broadway production to close before performances begin. In recent history Nerds, a musical about Steve Jobs and Bill Gates, closed during rehearsals in 2016 after the production also cited the loss of “a major investor”. This later led to a $6 million lawsuit filed by investors against the lead producers. The lawsuit was dismissed in October 2020.