Jean Smart's upcoming Broadway return in Call Me Izzy will feature an original score penned by Oscar, Grammy, Golden Globe, and BAFTA winner T Bone Burnett. Performances begin May 24 ahead of a June 12 opening night at Studio 54, with the limited run set to continue through August 17.
Burnett is mostly known for his work as a music writer and producer for screen projects, including work done on such films as Hunger Games, Walk the Line, Crazy Heart, The Big Lebowski, O Brother Where Art Thou?, The Ladykillers, and Inside Llewyn Davis. On stage, he's previously worked on productions of Twyla Tharp's How Long Blues and Sam Sephard's Tooth of Crime. Call Me Izzy will be Burnett's Broadway debut.
“I’ve had the good fortune of being in contact with the amazing musician and music producer, T Bone Burnett, who I adore,� says director Sarna Lapine in a statement. “He is an incredible music dramaturg and knows how to create the vernacular of a specific time and place. We had an incredibly good time imagining the music of this play and creating all these beautiful tracks.�
Written by Jamie Wax, the solo show tracks a woman in rural Louisiana who's trapped in an abusive marriage who finds possible escape through writing poetry. The performance will be Smart's first Broadway outing in 25 years, having last been on the boards with a Tony-nominated performance opposite Nathan Lane in a 2000 revival of The Man Who Came to Dinner.
The production will feature scenic design by Mikiko Suzuki MacAdams, lighting design by Donald Holder, costume design by Tom Broecker, and sound design by Beth Lake. Casting is by Caparelliotis Castings' David Caparelliotis and Joseph Gery. Howard Tilkin will serve as production stage manager.
Smart earned her most recent three Emmy Awards playing fictional, Joan Rivers–like comedian Deborah Vance on the HBO Max series Hacks, which tracks the comic's attempt to revive her career through a contentious relationship with a young writer. A 2021 Emmy win for the performance made her only the second actor in history (after Betty White) to win an Emmy in the comedy lead, supporting, and guest categories; as well as putting her on a short list of actors who have won all five major TV awards (Emmy, Golden Globe, the SAG, Critics' Choice, and Television Critics Association) in one TV season. The series' fourth season, which sees Deborah navigating hosting a late-night series on network TV, is currently streaming.
Wax is a comic, solo performer, playwright, journalist, and actor, whose writing credits include the musicals Evangeline and Passages (both written with composer Paul Taranto). Call Me Izzy, which he's been developing with Smart for several years, will be his Broadway debut.
Robert Ahrens is producing with P3 Productions' Ben Holtzman, Sammy Lopez, and Fiona Howe Rudin. Though performing at Studio 54, the play is not a Roundabout Theatre Company production.
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