swept away musical tour

Swept Away Tickets

The new musical featuring the music of The Avett Brothers sails to Broadway.

Swept Away Show Times

No Performances

About Swept Away on Broadway

When a violent storm sinks their whaling ship off the coast of New Bedford, Mass., the four survivors face a reckoning: how far will they go to stay alive? And can they live with the consequences?  

Know Before You Go

Including Avett Brothers songs such as “No Hard Feelings,” “Murder in the City” and “Ain’t No Man”, Swept Away is inspired by the Avett Brothers’ 2004 concept album  Mignonette , which was itself inspired by the story of the 1844 shipwreck of that name.

Cast & Creative

News & features, upcoming swept away events.

• Broadway Shows
• Swept Away on Broadway

Nov 25, 2023 - Jan 14, 2024

Book by John Logan Music and Lyrics by The Avett Brothers Choreographed by  David Neumann Directed by Michael Mayer By Special Arrangement with Matthew Masten , Sean Hudock , and Madison Wells Live

Kreeger Theater

Approximately 90 minutes without an intermission

View the SWEPT AWAY Program

"SOULFUL...STAGGERING...SPELLBINDING TALE...  Swept Away   has proved itself worthy of a broadway christening"

— The Washington Post

When a violent storm sinks their whaling ship off the coast of New Bedford, Mass., the four survivors face a reckoning: how far will they go to stay alive? And can they live with the consequences? With music and lyrics from The Avett Brothers (“America’s Biggest Roots Band,” Rolling Stone ), whose 2004 “Mignonette” was inspired by an 1884 shipwreck and the struggle of four men to survive, Swept Away is an electrifying, soul-stirring new musical exploring how facing tragedy can open the door to forgiveness…if only we’ll let it.

HUNTER BROWN

Ensemble / u/s Mate

MATT DeANGELIS

WAYNE DUVALL

ADRIAN BLAKE ENSCOE

Little Brother

TAUREAN EVERETT

Ensemble / Dance Captain / u/s Captain

JOHN GALLAGHER, JR.

CAMERON JOHNSON

Ensemble / u/s Big Brother & Little Brother

BRANDON KALM

MICHAEL J. MAINWARING

Ensemble / Partial Swing

ORVILLE MENDOZA

Ensemble / u/s Captain

TYRONE L. ROBINSON

STARK SANDS

Big Brother

JAMARI JOHNSON WILLIAMS

Hunter Brown ( Ensemble / u/s Mate ) is making his Arena Stage debut! Regional credits include The Wedding Singer (Gateway Playhouse), Escape to Margaritaville (Engeman Theater), and The Full Monty (Argyle Theatre). Hunter played Rolf on the National Tour of The Sound of Music and Nick on the National Tour of Fame: The Musical . Instagram: @ brunterhown

Matt DeAngelis ( Ensemble / u/s Mate ) is making his Arena Stage debut. Broadway: Hair (Woof) and Waitress (Earl). West End: Hair (Woof). Tours: Hair (Woof), American Idiot (Rep. From Jingletown), Once (Svec), and Waitress (Earl). Off-Broadway: Secret Life of Bees (Atlantic Theater Company) and Orpheus Descending (TFANA). TV: Person of Interest , Madam Secretary , Daredevil, Evil , For Life , Chicago P.D. , and FBI . Love to my wife (and favorite actor) Christine Dwyer and to my amazing dog Chowdah. This and ALL the others are for Janice DeAngelis RIP. #WAMFAM Instagram: @ mattdeangelis22

Wayne Duvall ( Captain ) is excited to be coming back to the city of his birth, making his Arena Stage debut reprising his role in Swept Away . On Broadway, Wayne was seen in 1984 . Off-Broadway credits include the critically acclaimed The Legend of Georgia McBride and the Encores! productions of Big River and Of Thee I Sing . Regionally, Wayne originated roles in the musicals Bonnie & Clyde and Bright Star . He also starred in The Cake w/ Faith Prince at La Jolla Playhouse and Signature’s production of Pride in the Falls of Autrey Mill w/ Christine Lahti. Some of Wayne’s notable film and television appearances are O Brother, Where Art Thou? , Lincoln , The Trial of the Chicago 7 , The Hunt , Billions , The Blacklist , and The Righteous Gemstones .

Adrian Blake Enscoe ( Little Brother ) starred opposite Hailee Steinfeld and Jane Krakowski in David Gordon Green’s Peabody Award-winning Dickinson for Apple TV+. He recently shot the lead in the independent film Breed of Greed , directed by Ralph Hemecker. He is also known for being one-third of the indie folk band Bandits on the Run, which has toured internationally and been featured on NPR’s Tiny Desk Contest Top Shelf. On the theater side, Adrian originated the role of Little Brother in the world premiere of Swept Away at Berkeley Rep. And has starred in several off-Broadway productions, notably Folk Wandering (ART/NY) and Billy and the Killers (HERE). He is a co-creator of Christopher Sears’ The Moonchildren Opera , an indie folk-opera that recently premiered at the 15th St. Meeting House in NYC, and is currently collaborating with Sears, the other Bandits, and writer Peter Hedges on an upcoming original musical. Instagram: @adrian.blake.enscoe @banditsontherun he/they

Taurean Everett ( Ensemble / Dance Captain / u/s Captain ) is making his Arena Stage debut! Taurean's Broadway credits include Moulin Rouge! , The Cher Show , Miss Saigon , and Mamma Mia! (Eddie). Tour and regional credits include Priscilla QOTD (First National Tour); Swept Away (Berkeley Rep);  Thoroughly Modern Millie (Actors Fund); Guys and Dolls  (Carnegie Hall);  Little Shop of Horrors (Audrey II in drag ,  Berkshire Theatre);  Can-Can , Damn Yankees , Curtains , and  Peter Pan  (Paper Mill Playhouse). Taurean is also a runway model on Bravo’s  Project Runway (seasons 18 and 20) , a promo model for Paramount+’s  RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars (season 8), and a featured performer on Peacock ’ s  The Amber Ruffin Show. Stay tuned! Instagram: @ taureanje

John Gallagher, Jr.  ( Mate ) won a 2007 Tony Award® for his role in the groundbreaking rock musical Spring Awakening . Other Broadway credits include Long Day’s Journey into Night , Jerusalem , Green Day’s American Idiot , and Rabbit Hole . Off-Broadway credits include Farragut North , Port Authority , and Kimberly Akimbo . He starred in Aaron Sorkin’s HBO drama series The Newsroom , as well as the acclaimed miniseries Olive Kitteridge . He has appeared in such films as Underwater , The Miseducation of Cameron Post , Hush , 10 Cloverfield Lane , Short Term 12 , Margaret , and Pieces of April . John’s two albums of original music, Six Day Hurricane and 8th and Jane are both available to stream online.

Cameron Johnson ( Ensemble / u/s Big Brother & Little Brother ) is thrilled to be performing at Arena Stage! His favorite credits include Into the Woods (2022 Broadway revival), Swept Away (Berkeley Repertory Theatre), Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish (Fyedka, Stage 42), and The Golden Bride (Misha, National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene). He received his BM at Acadia University, and MM at Manhattan School of Music. Instagram: @ camgraeme

Brandon Kalm ( Ensemble / u/s Big Brother & Little Brother ) is so happy to be making his Arena Stage debut with Swept Away after being involved with the amazing former production at Berkeley Rep. Some of his notable credits include both American Psycho and Waitress on Broadway. He also had the pleasure of performing with The Public Theater’s Shakespeare in the Park production of The Tempest . In addition, Brandon toured around the world with the traveling production of Green Day’s American Idiot . He has also appeared in various television shows including Z: The Beginning of Everything and The Blacklist. He is a proud Esper Studio Alum. Love to Odd. Instagram: @ bkalm

Michael J. Mainwaring ( Ensemble / Partial Swing ) is delighted to be back at Arena Stage after nine years. He was last seen at Arena in Smokey Joe’s Café . Michael’s DC credits include Passing Strange , Jesus Christ Superstar , Dreamgirls , the world premiere of In His Hands by Benjamin Benne, Godspell , Sweeney Todd , In the Heights , Matilda , The Mortification of Fovea Munson , Lost in the Stars , Shenandoah , Freedom’s Song , Thunder Knocking on the Door , and Three Little Birds  (world premiere). Other regional works include Rent and Spellbound (workshop). Michael wants to thank his beloved voice teacher Kristin Halliday for her guiding light and continued generosity over the years.

Orville Mendoza ( Ensemble / u/s Captain ) is making his Arena Stage debut! Orville’s Broadway credits include Peter and the Starcatcher and Pacific Overtures . Off-Broadway, Orville was most recently seen in Suzan-Lori Parks’ Plays for the Plague Year at The Public/NYSF; also at The Public, Romeo and Juliet (Delacorte), Timon of Athens , and the original cast of Sondheim/Weidman’s Road Show . Regionally, Orville performed at The Old Globe in Crime and Punishment – A Comedy ; Ebenezer Scrooge’s…Christmas Show ; Taming of the Shrew ; and The Heart of Rock & Roll (coming to Broadway spring 2024). Other regionals include East West Players, The Muny, 5th Avenue, Goodspeed, Long Wharf, and Kansas City Rep. Television credits include Dead Ringers , Billions , Law & Order: Criminal Intent , and featured vocals for The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and John Mulaney & The Sack Lunch Bunch. www.orvillemendoza.com

Tyrone L. Robinson ( Ensemble / u/s Captain ) A North Carolina native, Tyrone is honored to make his Arena Stage debut in Swept Away . Broadway: King Agnarr in Disney’s Frozen . Tours: The Book of Mormon and Mufasa Standby in The Lion King . Television: New Amsterdam (recurring), The Blacklist , FBI: Most Wanted , Lovecraft Country (HBO), and Law & Order: SVU . Favorite Regionals: Shakespeare Theatre (DC), Dallas Theater Center, Geva Theatre Center, and Goodspeed Musicals (CT). Tyrone co-wrote the musical Show Way with author Jacqueline Woodson which premiered at The Kennedy Center in 2022. Show Way will have a national tour in 2024. Huge thank you to this incredible creative team. Thank you, Elaine. Love you G and Bobo! MFA NYU Tisch. Instagram: @tyronelrobinson

Stark Sands ( Big Brother ) is a two-time Tony Award® nominee, for his performances in Kinky Boots and Journey’s End . Other Broadway credits include & Juliet , To Kill a Mockingbird , and Green Day’s American Idiot . Other theater credits include Swept Away (Berkeley Rep), Twelfth Night (Public Theater–Delacorte), and The Tempest (CSC). He starred in the acclaimed HBO miniseries Generation Kill , as well as Fox’s Minority Report . Some of Stark’s other notable film and television appearances include Stephen Spielberg’s The Post , the Coen Brothers’ Inside Llewyn Davis , Clint Eastwood’s Flags of Our Fathers , and the HBO series  Six Feet Under and Nip/Tuck . He has won a Grammy Award, a Theatre World Award, and an AEA Bayfield Award. For G, g & d, with deep gratitude for their sacrifice.

John Sygar  ( Ensemble / Partial Swing ) is a Maryland native, who was last seen at The Kennedy Center in Look Both Ways. Other DC credits include A.D. 16 , Beauty and the Beast , Once (Olney Theatre Center); Light Years (Signature Theatre); Spring Awakening (Round House Theatre); Peter and the Starcatcher (Constellation Theatre Company); Aquarium, Robin Hood , (Imagination Stage); Floyd Collins (1st Stage); and more. He also writes music for the group baseball hat and his solo project Jsyg. Instagram: @ jsyg

Jamari Johnson Williams  ( Ensemble / Partial Swing ) is honored to make his Arena Stage debut! On Broadway he was seen in the Tony Award®-winning Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations . Touring credits include the 8-time Tony Award® winner Hadestown (First National), Ain’t Too Proud (First National), Motown (closing cast), and Memphis . Select regional credits include Natasha, Pierre…Great Comet , Hair , The Wiz , South Pacific , and Smokey Joe’s . He is a founding member and youngest board member of his hometown orchestra, the Gifford Youth Orchestra. He hopes to heal others through art, as he once was. Peace. Instagram: @ jamaridarling

THE AVETT BROTHERS

Music and Lyrics

MICHAEL MAYER

DAVID NEUMANN

Choreographer

BRIAN USIFER

Music Supervisor / Music Arrangements & Orchestrations

CHRIS MILLER

Music Arrangements & Orchestrations

WILL VAN DYKE

Music Director

RACHEL HAUCK

Set Designer

SUSAN HILFERTY

Costume Designer

KEVIN ADAMS

Lighting Designer

JOHN SHIVERS

Sound Designer

JIM CARNAHAN, C.S.A.

New York Casting Director

JOSEPH PINZON

JOHANNA McKEON

Associate Director

Associate Choreographer

MATT DEITCHMAN

Associate Music Director

MATTHEW LEINER

Stage Manager

ALICE M. POLLITT

Assistant Stage Manager

MARNE ANDERSON

JALON PAYTON

MATTHEW MASTEN

Commercial Partner

SEAN HUDOCK

MADISON WELLS LIVE

DOLPHUS RAMSEUR

Avett Brothers Management

BERKELEY REPERTORY THEATRE

John Logan  ( Book ) received the Tony®, Drama Desk, Outer Critic Circle, and Drama League awards for his play  Red . This play has had more than 400 productions across the U.S. and over 160 foreign productions in 25 languages. He is the author of more than a dozen other plays, including  Peter and Alice ,  I’ll Eat You Last: A Chat with Sue Mengers , and  Never the Sinner . Musical theater work includes  Moulin Rouge! ,  The Last Ship ,  Superhero , and  Swept Away . He is the proud recipient of the O’Neill Theater Center’s 2019 Monte Cristo Award. As a screenwriter, John has been three times nominated for the Oscar and has received Golden Globe, BAFTA, WGA, Edgar, and PEN Center awards. His film work includes Skyfall , Spectre , Hugo , The Aviator , Gladiator ,  Rango , Alien: Covenant , Genius , Coriolanus , Sweeney Todd ,  The Last Samurai ,  Any Given Sunday , and  RKO 281 . He created and produced the television series Penny Dreadful and Penny Dreadful: City of Angels for Showtime.

The Avett Brothers  ( Music and Lyrics ), three-time Grammy Award nominees, made mainstream waves with their 2009 major label debut,  I and Love and You . In 2012,  The Carpenter  hit #4 on the Billboard  200, followed by  Magpie and the Dandelion  in 2013, which debuted at #5 on the Billboard 200. In 2016, the band was inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame. The 2017 documentary May It Last: A Portrait of The Avett Brothers  (co-directed by Judd Apatow and Michael Bonfiglio) chronicles the process of writing 2016’s  True Sadness,  which debuted at #1 on Billboard ’s Top Albums, #1 on Rock Albums, #3 on the Billboard 200, and scored two Grammy nominations. The film was released theatrically and on HBO to rave reviews and is available on DVD/Blu-Ray/VOD. In 2019, the band released their tenth studio album Closer Than Together featuring the single “High Steppin’” which reached #1 on the Americana Radio Singles Chart. The band ’ s latest album  The Third Gleam  debuted at #1 on Billboard ’s Americana/Folk Albums chart, #1 Rock Albums, #1 Vinyl Albums, and the single “Victory” hit #1 on the Americana Radio Singles Chart. The Avett Brothers stayed connected to fans amidst the COVID-19 pandemic by playing two sold-out drive-in shows at Charlotte Motor Speedway. They will close out the year with their 20th annual New Year’s Eve celebration at Raleigh ’ s PNC Arena.

Michael Mayer  ( Director ) is a Washington, DC native and very happy to make his Arena Stage debut with this production. Recent work includes A Beautiful Noise: The Neil Diamond Musical and Little Shop of Horrors  – both currently running in New York; the national tour of his recent Broadway hit Funny Girl and Jeanine Tesori’s opera Grounded at the WNO (which will open the Met Opera season next fall). He’s directed 20 Broadway shows including  Spring Awakening , American Idiot , Hedwig and the Angry Inch , A View From the Bridge ,  Side Man , Burn This , Head Over Heels ,  Thoroughly Modern Millie , and You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown , as well as many shows in off-Broadway, regional, and international theaters. Film and TV credits include Single All the Way , The Seagull , A Home at the End of the World , and Smash (pilot and season one). Metropolitan Opera productions: Rigoletto , La Traviata , and Marnie . He’s the recipient of Tony®, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, Drama League, Jefferson, and Carbonell awards. He serves on the Board of SDC.

David Neumann ( Choreographer ) This marks David’s return to Arena Stage after choreographing Cabaret with direction by Molly Smith. Broadway: Hadestown (Chita Rivera Award, Tony®, Drama Desk, Lortel nominations). David’s original work as artistic director of Advanced Beginner Group has been presented in New York at PS 122, New York Live Arts, The Kitchen, Symphony Space, Abrons Arts Center, The Chocolate Factory, and The Whitney. ABG has also performed at the Walker Art Center, Jacob’s Pillow, MASS MoCA, and the American Dance Institute, among others. Recent New York projects include directing Geoff Sobelle in  The Object Lesson (New York Theatre Workshop, BAM) and choreography for Underground Railroad Game (Ars Nova), An Octoroon (Soho Rep), and  The Antipodes (Signature Theatre). Film: I Am Legend , various Hal Hartley films,  A Marriage Story , and White Noise (Noah Baumbach). David is the recipient of three NY Dance & Performance Bessie Awards, including Best Production in 2015 for I Understand Everything Better . He is currently a professor of theatre at Sarah Lawrence College.

Brian Usifer ( Music Supervisor / Music Arrangements & Orchestrations )’s Broadway credits include A Beautiful Noise: The Neil Diamond Musical (Arrangements, Orchestrations), Disney’s Frozen (Music Director, Additional Arrangements), Kinky Boots (Music Director, Additional Arrangements, Associate Music Supervisor – Tour, London, and Toronto), and The Book of Mormon (Associate Music Supervisor). Regional credits include Chess at The Kennedy Center, Swept Away at Berkeley Rep, The Heart of Rock & Roll at The Old Globe, Afterwords at Seattle 5th Avenue, and Mr. Chickee's Funny Money at the Atlantic. Other highlights include An Evening with Kristen & Bobby Lopez at Lincoln Center, NBC’s Annie Live! (Additional Orchestrations), and The Wiz Live! (Additional Orchestrations). Brian can be heard as a pianist on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel on Amazon. www.brianusifer.com Instagram: @ brianusifer

Chris Miller ( Music Arrangements & Orchestrations ) DC native, Arena debut . He is the composer of Tuck Everlasting (Broadway),  The Burnt Part Boys  (Playwrights Horizons/Vineyard, Lortel nominee for Best Musical),  Fugitive Songs  (Drama Desk nominee for Outstanding Revue), and Dreamland , for the EdTA and Concord Theatricals, cast albums available everywhere. He contributed songs to PBS’s The Electric Company , Sesame Street , and Elmo’s World , and scripts for two Barnum & Bailey Circuses. In progress: book, music & lyrics for  Ravello   (Signature Theatre’s American Musical Voices Project),and The Goats,  a commission for Barbara Whitman/Grove Entertainment; Prairie Songs and April Twilights , for soprano and orchestra setting the poetry of Willa Cather ;  with Nathan Tysen,  Revival , based on a story by Willa Cather, for Playwrights Horizons/TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, and Blown Sideways Through Life  (book by Claudia Shear). Instagram: @ ckevinmiller

Will Van Dyke ( Music Director/Conductor/Piano/Accordion ) is a Grammy-nominated music producer, songwriter, music director, orchestrator, and arranger working in theater, television, and film. Most recently Will served as the Executive Music Producer for the film Theater Camp . Will has penned the score to The Messenger , Ass , and i at Pioneer Theater Company, as well as The 64 Keys (Cleveland Play House), The Gravedigger’s Lullaby  (off-Broadway), Straight (off-Broadway), The Lion King Experience titles (Disney), among others. Will is the Music Supervisor/Orchestrator/Arranger for the hit revival of Little Shop of Horrors . Will also Supervised/Orchestrated/Arranged Pretty Woman on Broadway and Fly at La Jolla Playhouse. Other credits: Kinky Boots , Rent ,  The Addams Family , Grease , and Wicked . Will writes musicals with Jeff Talbott. For more: www.willvandyke.com or @wvdmusic.

RACHEL HAUCK ( Set Designer )’s recent work includes the Broadway productions of Hadestown , Good Night, Oscar , How I Learned to Drive , What the Constitution Means to Me , and Latin History for Morons ; Sonya Tayeh and Jenn Freeman’s Is It Thursday Yet? (Perelman Arts Center), Hansol Jung’s Merry Me (NYTW), and Jill Sobule and Liza Berkenmeier’s F*ck 7th Grade . She is the recipient of Princess Grace and Lily Awards, an Obie Award for Sustained Excellence, a Tony® nomination and Jeff Award for Good Night, Oscar , and a Tony® Award for the design of Hadestown . Rachel serves on the American Theater Wing Advisory Committee and the Eastern Regional Board of USA829.

Susan Hilferty ( Costume Designer ) has designed costumes and scenery for over 400 productions across the globe. At Arena: Swept Away and Turn Me Loose . Broadway credits include  Wicked , Funny Girl ,  Present Laughter , Spring Awakening ,  Lestat , Into the Woods, and August Wilson’s Radio Golf . Her many directorial collaborations include Athol Fugard (over 40 productions), Joe Mantello, Yaël Farber, James Lapine, Michael Mayer, Richard Nelson, Tony Kushner, JoAnne Akalaitis, Arin Arbus, Des McAnuff, Rebecca Taichman, and the late Garland Wright. Hilferty has also designed for opera ( Rigoletto , Traviata , and the upcoming  Aida for the Metropolitan Opera); dance ( Love Stories for Alvin Ailey), and live music events (Taylor Swift’s Speak Now world tour). Hilferty’s many honors include the USITT Lifetime Achievement Award, the Irene Sharaff Award for Lifetime Achievement, an Obie for Sustained Excellence in Design, the Lilly Award, the Ruth Morley Design Award, and Tony®, Outer Critics Circle, and Drama Desk awards for Wicked . Hilferty received a 2023 Tony® nomination for Best Costume Design of a Musical for Parade. Hilferty is on the Graduate Design faculty at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, having served as chair for 25 years. www.susanhilferty.com

Kevin Adams ( Lighting Designer ) has designed music videos for Meatloaf, Dokken, Janet Jackson, The Little River Band, The Roches, Arsenio Hall, and Debbie Allen.

JOHN SHIVERS ( Sound Designer )’s credits include Shucked (2023 Tony® and Drama Desk Award nominee), Beauty and the Beast (worldwide), Pretty Woman (worldwide), Cirque du Soleil’s Paramour , Kinky Boots (2013 Tony® Award recipient), Hugh Jackman: Back on Broadway , Leap of Faith , Bonnie and Clyde , Sister Act , 9 to 5 , Cat on a Hot Tin Roof , The Little Mermaid , Tarzan , Billy Crystal’s 700 Sundays . International: Wicked , Tarzan , The Lion King (Shanghai) and (Singapore), Regional: The Muny (2015-present), Trading Places , The Wanderer , 42nd Street , Heart of Rock & Roll , First Wives Club , Nutty Professor , Tales of the City , Emma , Robin & the 7 Hoods , Ace . Associate: Mary Poppins , Hairspray , The Producers , The Lion King , Titanic , Big , How to Succeed… , The Who’s Tommy , The Buddy Holly Story . Other credits: Savion Glover, Dionne Warwick, Burt Bacharach, Gregory Hines, and engineering at Electric Lady Studios.

JIM CARNAHAN, C.S.A. (New York Casting Director ) has cast over 150 Broadway shows. His recent Broadway work includes Merrily We Roll Along ; Doubt ; Appropriate ; Shark is Broken ; A Doll’s House ; Leopoldstadt ; A Beautiful Noise ; Funny Girl ; New York, New York ; Lehman Trilogy ; Moulin Rouge! ; Harry Potter as well as off-Broadway’s Little Shop of Horrors . Recent/upcoming London includes: Enemy of the People , Plaza Suite , Sinatra: The Musical , Lemonsx5 , Best of Enemies , Eureka Day , Mad House . Film: Ari Aster’s Beau Is Afraid .

Joseph Pinzon  ( DC   Casting ) is the founder and creative producer of the contemporary circus company Short Round Productions and its award-winning show Filament . With over 25 years of performing experience, he has worked internationally with renowned companies such as Cirque Éloize, Compagnia Finzi Pasca, Cirque du Soleil, and The 7 Fingers. He holds an MS in Arts Leadership from USC, a BA in Psychology from UCLA, and graduated from the National Circus School in Montreal with a specialization in aerial techniques. He was the casting and resident director for Chamäleon Productions (Berlin) and Constellation Immersive (CAA’s experiential affiliate). He is also a member of the Creative & Independent Producer Alliance and a founding board member of the American Circus Alliance. You can see him causing chaos on season 6 of  Nailed It!  on Netflix, where (spoiler alert) he is a part of the series’ first three-way tie.

JOHANNA McKEON ( Associate Director ) Broadway: Funny Girl , Hedwig and the Angry Inch , King Kong , American Idiot , War Paint , Grey Gardens . Broadway Tours: Funny Girl , Hedwig and the Angry Inch , American Idiot , Rent . Directing credits include Henry V , Unseen , and Anonymous Biography at The Old Globe and Hedwig and the Angry Inch at Olney Theatre. She directed the premiere of Anne Washburn’s I Have Loved Strangers (Clubbed Thumb, WTF) and the East Coast premiere of Mona Mansour’s We Swim, We Talk, We Go to War (Vineyard Playhouse). She co-founded The Susan Sontag Prize for Translation and is a recipient of Drama League, Boris Sagal, and Fulbright fellowships. MFA UT Austin.

BRIAN MUNN ( Associate Choreographer ) is thrilled be working at Arena for the first time and to continue being a part of the journey of Swept Away , having served as the associate choreographer for the world premiere at Berkeley Rep. As an actor, he has appeared onstage both on and off Broadway, in national tours, and at a number of other NYC and regional theaters, as well as a few TV shows. Grateful to David Neumann for the opportunity, much love to wife Eva, and in memory of Mom.

MATT DEITCHMAN ( Associate Music Director ) is thrilled to work with Arena Stage for the first time. Previously in DC: Twelfth Night (Shakespeare Theatre – Music Director & Cast). Matt is a NYC-based music director, multi-instrumentalist, actor, composer, and orchestrator. As an orchestra musician, he has played for Broadway productions including Parade , A Strange Loop , and Almost Famous . Off-Broadway, Matt was the MD and conductor of Trevor (Stage 42 & Disney+). Recent regional credits include Once (Writers Theatre – Jeff nomination, Music Direction & Ensemble) and Buddy (Marriott Theatre – Jeff nomination, Music Direction). Additional regional work includes Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Lyric Opera of Chicago, South Coast Repertory Theatre, Asolo Repertory Theatre, Paramount Theatre, American Stage Theatre, Ogunquit Playhouse, and many others. Northwestern University alum. mattdeitchman.com Instagram: @mattydeitch

Matthew Leiner ( Stage Manager ) is thrilled to be making his Arena Stage debut with Swept Away after working on the world-premiere production at Berkeley Repertory Theatre. His Broadway credits include productions of Hollywood Arms , The Phantom of the Opera , Fiddler on the Roof , Wicked , If/Then , Finding Neverland , School of Rock , King Kong , and West Side Story. He toured for 11 years with productions of The Phantom of the Opera , Sister Act , Mary Poppins , Wicked , and Jersey Boys . Love to Claudia and Archer.

Alice M. Pollitt ( Assistant Stage Manager )’s Broadway credits include Ain’t No Mo’ , A Strange Loop , West Side Story , King Kong , A Bronx Tale , American Psycho , Noises Off , and Aladdin , as well as the First National Tour of Finding Neverland . Other credits include Disney Theatrical Group, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, The Public Theater, New York City Center Gala, and Westport Country Playhouse.

MARNE ANDERSON ( Assistant Stage Manager )’s other Arena Stage highlights include American Prophet , August Wilson’s Seven Guitars , Disney’s Newsies , Jubilee , Indecent , Dave , Two Trains Running , The Great Society , A Raisin in the Sun , Moby Dick , All the Way , King Hedley II , Five Guys Named Moe , Metamorphoses , Arabian Nights , and Duke Ellington’s Sophisticated Ladies . Additional DC credits include A Midsummer Night’s Dream , Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (Folger Theatre); Angels in America: Parts 1 and 2 (Round House); and Here There Are Blueberries , King Lear , Jane Anger , The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci , Amen Corner (Shakespeare Theatre Company). She is a graduate of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

Jalon Payton ( Assistant Stage Manager ) is excited to be returning to Arena Stage for the 2023/24 Season, after being a part of last season’s The High Ground. Recent Baltimore/DC credits include Ken Ludwig’s Baskerville (Everyman Theatre); The Swindlers: A True-ish Tall Tale , The Folks at Home (Baltimore Center Stage); and 10 Seconds (Imagination Stage). Other credits include The Royale, Anton’s Shorts , The Brothers Size , and A Raisin in the Sun at American Players Theatre. Jalon has also stage-managed play readings/workshops with Arena Stage, Taffety Punk Theatre, and Round House Theatre. Jalon is a graduate of the University of Maryland Baltimore County.

MATTHEW MASTEN ( Commercial Partner ) is a theater and film producer based in New York City. He received a Tony ®  nomination in 2012 as part of the producing team of Gore Vidal’s The Best Man starring Angela Lansbury and James Earl Jones. Most recently, he served as Executive Producer of Michael Mayer’s film adaptation of Anton Chekhov ’ s The Seagull , adapted for the screen by Stephen Karam and starring Annette Bening, Saoirse Ronan, and Elisabeth Moss. Past Broadway and Off-Broadway productions include Bill Condon’s acclaimed revival of Side Show , Of Mice and Men starring James Franco and Chris O’Dowd, Buyer & Cellar starring Michael Urie (Off-Broadway and National Tour), My Name is Asher Lev (Outer Critics Circle Award), and the 2014 Original Cast Recording of Side Show . Matthew is a proud graduate of Elon University. he/him/his

SEAN HUDOCK ( Commercial Partner ) is a theater, audio, and filmmaker based in Brooklyn, NY. Producing work includes the creation and development of original award-winning plays which have been seen at Arena Stage, Amphibian Stage, Primary Stages, Ars Nova, Berkeley Rep, and beyond. In 2020, he co-founded the immersive audio company Knock at the Gate which has since been featured in the New York Times , Wall Street Journal , American Theatre magazine, on NPR, and Good Day New York . As an actor, on screen he starred opposite Seth Numrich, Matt Doyle, and Hale Appleman in Private Romeo , The Chaperone opposite Elizabeth McGovern and Haley Lu Richardson, Comedy Centralr’s Alternatino with Arturo Castro, and on stage in leading roles at Cleveland Play House, SoHo Playhouse, Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, and Alabama Shakespeare Festival. Sean has been developing Swept Away alongside Matthew Masten since 2015.

MADISON WELLS LIVE ( Commercial Partner ) is the live entertainment arm of Madison Wells, Gigi Pritzker’s award-winning, independent production company with a strong bias towards stories for, by, and about badass women and people who push boundaries. Led by Executive Producer Jamie Forshaw, Madison Wells Live focuses on producing purpose-driven projects through collaboration with partners who are aligned in the belief that great storytelling can provoke, inspire, and move audiences around the world. Broadway credits include Jaja’s African Hair Braiding , Water for Elephants , Shucked (Tony® nomination), Company (Tony® Award), The Old Man and The Pool , Pass Over , Hadestown (Tony® Award), The Inheritance (Tony® Award), Million Dollar Quartet (Tony® nomination). West End: The Ocean at the End of the Lane , The Old Man and The Pool , The Motive , and The Cue . Off-Broadway: Seven Deadly Sins (Drama Desk Award). Regional: Swept Away (Arena Stage/Berkeley Rep). For more information about Madison Wells Live, visit madisonwellsmedia.com .

DOLPHUS RAMSEUR ( Avett Brothers Management ) Born and raised in North Carolina, music manager and record label owner Dolphus Ramseur has managed The Avett Brothers since 2003 while also fostering the creative visions of musicians including Carolina Chocolate Drops, Sierra Ferrell, Rhiannon Giddens, Heartless Bastards, Amythyst Kiah, Langhorne Slim, and Steep Canyon Rangers. His artists have sold out prestigious venues including Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, Barclays Center, and Red Rocks Amphitheatre. Ramseur was inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame in 2018 and currently acts as the organization’s Chairman of the Board of Directors. Learn more about Ramseur and his company at ramseur.com .

BERKELEY REPERTORY THEATRE  has grown from a storefront stage to an international leader in innovative theatre and has provided a welcoming home for emerging and established artists since 1968. Berkeley Rep’s shows have gone on to win six Tony Awards, seven Obie Awards, nine Drama Desk Awards, one Grammy Award, one Pulitzer Prize, and many other honors. Berkeley Rep received the Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre in 1997. The Ground Floor: Berkeley Rep’s Center for the Creation and Development of New Work was launched in 2012. The Berkeley Rep School of Theatre helps build the audiences of tomorrow with its nationally recognized teen programs. Learn more at berkeleyrep.org .

Special Performance Notes

Weekday Matinees Friday, December 8, at 12 p.m. Wednesday, December 20, at 12 p.m. Wednesday, December 27, at 12 p.m. Friday, December 29, at 12 p.m. Early Curtains Sunday, December 10, at 1 p.m. Sunday, December 10, at 6 p.m. Southwest Nights Tuesday, November 28, at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, January 4, at 8:00 p.m. Wednesday, January 10, at 7:30 p.m.

Post-Show Conversations Friday, December 8, at 12 p.m. Tuesday, December 12, at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, December 14, at 8 p.m. Wednesday, December 20, at 12 p.m. Wednesday, December 27, at 12 p.m. Audio-Described Performance Saturday, December 9, at 2 p.m. Mask-Required Performances Tuesday, December 12, at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, December 24, at 2 p.m. Wednesday, December 27, at 12 p.m. Saturday, December 30, at 8 p.m.

Swept Away In The News

THE WASHINGTON POST

Arena Stage’s ‘Swept Away,’ ‘Angels in America’ top Helen Hayes nominations

Helen Hayes Award nominations ‘swept away’ by Arena Stage in battle of best local theater

NPR ALL THINGS CONSIDERED

Truth, forgiveness: 'Swept Away' is a theatrical vessel for Avett Bros' music

WASHINGTON CITY PAPER

Tuneful and tragic, Swept Away looks to be the latest Arena Stage musical to graduate to Broadway.

DRAMA FIENDS PODCAST

Episode 24: Swept Away with Adrian Blake Enscoe

BROADWAY.COM

With Musical Swept Away , The Avett Brothers Chart New Waters

THEATERMANIA

Avett Brothers-Inspired Musical Swept Away Hoists Enthralling Sails

NO DEPRESSION

The Avett Brothers’ Songs Get Theatrical Treatment in ‘Swept Away’

THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER

The stars of the Avett Brothers musical ‘Swept Away’ embrace their emotional journey

FOX 5 GOOD DAY DC

"Swept Away" sweeps audiences off their feet at Arena Stage

Watch: Get Swept Away With the New Avett Brothers Musical at Arena Stage

Set Sail with the Swept Away Cast on Opening Night

THE FREE LANCE-STAR

A striking 'Swept Away’ lands at Arena Stage

DISTRICT FRAY

“Swept Away” Washes Ashore at Arena Stage

“TRANSFIXING NEW MUSICAL…waves of roots rock and soulful introspection come crashing one after the other”

BROADWAYWORLD

Photos: Go Inside Opening Night of The Avett Brothers Musical SWEPT AWAY at Arena Stage

METRO WEEKLY

“SEE WORTHY…The Avett Brothers’ roots rock translates beautifully to the stage in the new musical adventure”

“...with ELITE TALENT across the board, a TRULY STUNNING score, and a MASTERFUL set,  Swept Away has tremendous potential as a production with an eye for Broadway”

DC THEATER ARTS

"AWESOME, in the fullest sense of the word…"

THE DC LINE

“Gallagher, Duvall, Sands and Enscoe are careful stewards of the Avett Brothers’ beloved songs…their four voices blend remarkably well in group numbers and soar in solo turns.” 

Interview: Chris Miller and Brian Usifer On Orchestrating The Avett Brothers For The Stage

MARYLAND THEATRE GUIDE

“DELIVERS MASTERFUL THEATRE…you may find yourself swept away”

TALKIN' BROADWAY

"DEEPLY EMOTIONAL story…powered by RICHLY MELODIC score…"

A THEATRE GOER'S THOUGHTS

“DARING and ORIGINAL, CHALLENGING and THOUGHT-PROVOKING… Swept Away is one of the most stunning pieces of theatre that I’ve ever seen”

DREW MORRIS

"...a RESOUNDING SUCCESS, featuring can’t-miss acting, an intrepid, tragic book, and jaw-dropping production effects"

UNPROFESSIONAL OPINION

“For the entirety of its 90 minutes, I was gripped by its stunningly distilled storytelling..."

Photos: Get a 1st Look at Avett Brothers Musical Swept Away , Opening December 6 at Arena Stage

Will Swept Away Rock John Gallagher Jr. and Michael Mayer Back to Broadway?

An Avett Brothers musical is testing the waters. Next stop: Broadway?

Is an Avett Brothers Musical in Broadway’s Future?

Avett Brothers Musical Swept Away Starts at Arena Stage November 25

The 36 best things to do in D.C. this weekend and next week

THE GEORGETOWNER

Weekend Roundup: Get “Swept Away” at Arena Stage

Photos: Go Inside the First Rehearsal for SWEPT AWAY at Arena Stage

THE NEW YORK TIMES

Musicals, Plays and Festivals to Take In This Fall and Spring

2023 Fall Arts Guide: Swept Away , opens Nov. 25

See Who's Starring in Avett Brothers Musical Swept Away at Arena Stage

Avett Brothers Musical Swept Away Unveils Key Art From Rock Poster Artist Ken Taylor

Full Cast & Creative Team Set for The Avett Brothers' SWEPT AWAY at Arena Stage

TIMES SQUARE CHRONICLES

Theatre News: Mother Play , Harmony , Hadestown , On the Flip Side , Baked and Swept Away

Full Cast and Creative Team Announced for Avett Brothers Musical Swept Away

Momentum builds for East Coast debut of The Avett Brothers musical ‘Swept Away’

Broadway-Aimed Avett Brothers Musical ‘Swept Away’ Sets Washington D.C. Cast

John Gallagher Jr., Stark Sands to Lead Swept Away at Arena Stage

THE BROADWAY BLOG

‘SWEPT AWAY’ SAILS INTO ARENA STAGE THIS FALL

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Book by JOHN LOGAN Music and lyrics by THE AVETT BROTHERS Music arrangements and orchestrations by CHRIS MILLER AND BRIAN USIFER Choreography by DAVID NEUMANN Directed by MICHAEL MAYER World premiere Peet’s Theatre

JAN 9–MAR 13, 2022

Running time: 90 min, no intermission Show advisory: Swept Away includes the use of strobe-like lighting effects.

Tony Award-winning director Michael Mayer ( Spring Awakening , Hedwig and the Angry Inch ) blew the roof off Berkeley Rep in 2009 with Green Day’s American Idiot . Now he returns with a captivating world premiere musical, this time featuring a book by Tony Award-winning stage and screen writer John Logan ( Red , Broadway’s Moulin Rouge! , Skyfall , Gladiator ), and music and lyrics by “America’s biggest roots band” ( Rolling Stone ) and multiple Grammy Award nominee The Avett Brothers.

1888, off the coast of New Bedford, MA. When a violent storm sinks their whaling ship, the four surviving souls—a young man in search of adventure, his big brother who has sworn to protect him, a captain at the end of a long career at sea, and a worldly first mate who has fallen from grace—each face a reckoning: How far will I go to stay alive? And can I live with the consequences?

Produced by special arrangement with Matthew Masten, Sean Hudock, and Madison Wells Live.

“ELEVATES A TRAGEDY TO MYTHIC PROPORTIONS, REVERBERATING ALL THE WAY INTO YOUR CORE!

Gallagher activates his whole body making him MORE ALIVE THAN THE REST OF US!

“OUT AND OUT STUNNING! THE MOST EXHILARATING THEATER I HAVE SEEN! THE CAST IS SHIP-SHAPE FROM TOP-TO-BOTTOM, WORLD-CLASS TALENT! AVETT BROTHERS MUSIC IS GORGEOUS, TIMELESS, AND PERFECTLY SUITED! THE CREATIVE BRILLIANCE, PIERCING EMOTIONAL DIRECTNESS WILL MAKE YOU GLAD YOU TOOK THE JOURNEY!” – Bay Area News Group

“SPELLBINDING! MARVELOUS ACTING AND MUSIC! I WAS SWEPT AWAY! The lyrics and music by The Avett Brothers are POETIC, MOVING, AND BEAUTIFULLY SUNG! Innovative book, on-point direction, THE MOST ORIGINAL AND MESMERIZING THEATER I’VE SEEN IN A LONG TIME! WORTH THE WAIT!” – Berkeleyside

“THE SUPERB CAST, CRISP DIRECTION, AND PASSIONATE SCORE ARE BREATHTAKING AND EMOTIONALLY MESMERIZING!

A THRILLING SUSPENSEFUL RIDE BY DIRECTOR MAYER, the production team behind this show is TOP-NOTCH, THE STIRRING MUSIC OF AWARD WINNING AVETT BROTHERS!

SURE TO BRING TEARS TO MANY! WELL WORTH THE TWO YEAR WAIT TO SEE THIS STUNNING PRODUCTION!” – Broadwayworld

“STRIKING! ABSOLUTELY ARTFUL! FANTASTIC VOICES AND ACTING, GALLAGHER IMBUES WITH RAW INTENSITY!” – SFist

Season sponsors

In-kind season sponsor

Executive sponsor

Schwab Charitable

Swept Away is a recipient of the Edgerton Foundation New Play Award and is made possible in part by the Mosse Artistic Development Fund.

Local Partnerships

In collaboration with local brewery The Rare Barrel, we are excited to debut our first ever specialty brewed beer made for our production of Swept Away. "Fire in the Spout" is a golden sour beer aged in oak barrels with raspberry, blood orange, and pink Himalayan sea salt. To purchase, stop into their Tasting Room at 940 Parker Street in Berkeley or order online for shipping in California.

SEE AND HEAR

Lord Lay Your Hand on My Shoulder/Ain’t No Man

Stark Sands and Adrian Blake Enscoe perform "Murder in the City"

Photos by Kevin Berne/Berkeley Repertory Theatre

(l to r) Stark Sands (Big Brother), Wayne Duvall (Captain), John Gallagher, Jr. (Mate), and Adrian Blake Enscoe (Little Brother) in Swept Away

Adrian Blake Enscoe (Little Brother) in Swept Away

(front row, l to r) Adrian Blake Enscoe (Little Brother) and Stark Sands (Big Brother); (second row, l to r) Cameron Johnson (Ensemble), Taurean Everett (Ensemble), Vishal Vaidya (Ensemble), Jacob Keith Watson (Ensemble), and John Gallagher, Jr. (Mate) in Swept Away

(front) John Gallagher, Jr. (Mate); (second row, l to r) Cameron Johnson (Ensemble), Taurean Everett (Ensemble), Jacob Keith Watson (Ensemble), and Vishal Vaidya (Ensemble); (back row, l to r) Adrian Blake Enscoe (Little Brother) and Stark Sands (Big Brother) in Swept Away

Wayne Duvall (Captain) in Swept Away

(front) Adrian Blake Enscoe (Little Brother); (background, l to r) Cameron Johnson (Ensemble), Wayne Duvall (Captain), and John Gallagher, Jr. (Mate) in Swept Away

(l to r) John Gallagher, Jr. (Mate) and Wayne Duvall (Captain) in Swept Away

(l to r) Adrian Blake Enscoe (Little Brother) and Stark Sands (Big Brother) in Swept Away

Book by John Logan | Music and lyrics by The Avett Brothers | Music arrangements and orchestrations by Chris Miller and Brian Usifer | Choreography by David Neumann | Directed by Michael Mayer | Scenic design by Rachel Hauck | Costume design by Susan Hilferty | Lighting design by Kevin Adams | Sound design by Kai Harada | Music direction by Julie Wolf and Sean Kana

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Swept Away - Broadway Tickets, News, Info & More

Longacre Theatre (Broadway)

When a violent storm sinks their whaling ship off the coast of New Bedford, Mass., the four survivors face a reckoning: how far will they go to stay alive? And can they live with the consequences? With music and lyrics from The Avett Brothers (“America’s Biggest Roots Band,” Rolling Stone), whose 2004 “Mignonette” was inspired by an 1884 shipwreck and the struggle of four men to survive, SWEPT AWAY is an electrifying, soul-stirring new musical exploring how facing tragedy can open the door to forgiveness… if only we’ll let it.

Get Swept Away Email Alerts

Check out pics of the new marquee for Swept Away at the Longacre Theatre.

The new musical Swept Away, with music by The Avett Brothers, has found its Broadway home and set a first performance date! It was previously announced that the production would open this fall. Now, it has been announced via a story on the show's official Instagram account, that performances will begin on October 29 at the Longacre Theatre.

The new musical Swept Away, with music by The Avett Brothers, will begin performances on Broadway this fall.

Swept Away History

Other productions of swept away.

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Avett Brothers Musical, ‘Swept Away,’ to Open on Broadway This Fall

The show, inspired by a 19th-century shipwreck, has had previous runs in Berkeley, Calif., and Washington.

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By Michael Paulson

“Swept Away,” a new musical featuring songs by the Americana band the Avett Brothers, is planning to open on Broadway this fall, following productions in California and Washington.

The musical is inspired by a once-famous shipwreck: In 1884, a British yacht called the Mignonette was wrecked at sea, and the four-man crew’s desperate efforts to survive, which included cannibalism, led to a protracted and influential legal battle. The details of the ordeal have been changed for “Swept Away,” which is set in 1888 on a whaling ship off the coast of New Bedford, Mass.

Much of the musical’s score is drawn from “Mignonette,” a 2004 Avett Brothers album inspired by the shipwreck. But the score also includes songs from four other Avett Brothers albums and an original song the band wrote for the stage show.

The band announced that the musical would be coming to Broadway during a concert on Friday night at Forest Hills Stadium in Queens. Some of the actors who have performed in previous iterations of the show joined them onstage.

The musical features a book by John Logan, who won a Tony Award for writing “Red.” The director is Michael Mayer, who won a Tony for directing “Spring Awakening.”

The show has had two previous productions, in 2022 at Berkeley Repertory Theater in California, and last winter at Arena Stage in Washington. Thomas Floyd, a critic for The Washington Post, called it “transfixing” and said “this morality tale launches with toe-tapping propulsion before anchoring for an intimate elegy on grief and guilt.”

A spokesman said the musical would open this fall at a Shubert theater, but said the production was not ready to confirm the specific timing or location. The principal actors from the previous productions — John Gallagher Jr., Stark Sands, Adrian Blake Enscoe and Wayne Duvall — joined the Avett Brothers onstage Friday night, and were introduced as “the cast of the soon-to-be-officially Broadway show.”

The Broadway run will be produced by Matthew Masten, Sean Hudock, and Madison Wells Live (founded by Gigi Pritzker , a billionaire film producer).

Michael Paulson is the theater reporter for The Times. More about Michael Paulson

Swept Away Tickets

About Swept Away

Ahoy, Avett Brothers fans! Get Swept Away tickets and experience a new musical: an epic story about a stranded crew following a disastrous shipwreck off the coast of Massachusetts based on a legendary true story. Featuring a book by Broadway vet John Logan (a Tony Award winner for Red and a nominee for Moulin Rouge! ) and directed by Tony Award winner Michael Mayer ( Spring Awakening ), Swept Away is a “spellbinding tale” per The Washington Post. Set an alert for when Swept Away tickets go on sale to be transported to the beauty and dangers of the open seas.

Experience Swept Away in New York: following its acclaimed and sold-out, coast-to-coast runs at Berkeley Repertory Theatre in California and Arena Stage in Washington, DC, Swept Away now comes to Broadway, running at the Longacre Theatre starting October 29. Enjoy songs by “America’s biggest roots band” (Rolling Stone) and see Swept Away on Broadway — book tickets with TodayTix when they become available.

October 29th, 2024

Musicals , Broadway

Longacre Theatre

Swept Away cast and creative team

By: John Logan Songs by: The Avett Brothers Director: Michael Mayer Choreography: David Neumann Sets: Rachel Hauck Costumes: Susan Hilferty Lighting: Kevin Adams Sound: John Shivers Other info: Music arrangements and orchestrations by Chris Miller and Brian Usifer, music supervision by Usifer, music direction by Will Van Dyke

Accessibility

Accommodations for patrons who are blind, deaf, partially sighted, and/or have hearing loss; partial wheelchair access, handrail access

More information about Swept Away

Swept Away features a number of Avett Brothers hits from various albums and is also based on the band’s 2004 concept album Mignonette . That album was inspired by the true story of the 1844 shipwreck of the name. Head back in time and visit the crew of Mignonette , cast adrift in a small lifeboat without enough food or water. After nearly three weeks at sea, and with little promise of rescue, two of the crew members decided that in order to save their own lives they would have to kill and eat the ship's teenage cabin boy; by that time, he had fallen gravely ill after drinking seawater.

It is a dark but luminous tale about human choices and consequences that gets a folksy twist and modern retelling in this new musical. Swept Away follows a stranded crew off the coast of New Bedford, Massachusetts and asks how far will they go to stay alive in the face of enormous adversity?

What to watch for

• Tony Award nominee David Neumann choreographs this show, and his work on Hadestown proves he knows how to physicalize how a crew moves.
• Director Michael Mayer has worked with rock bands before and brought their songs to Broadway, as previously seen in working with Green Day for American Idiot .
• Some included songs in the show include beloved Avett Brothers hits such as “No Hard Feelings,” “Murder in the City,” and “Ain’t No Man.”
• Audiences can expect the best of both worlds in this play: all the epic design elements that showcase an enormous shipwreck foregrounded by intimate stories of what makes us human told by a small, adrift crew of sailors.

Frequently asked questions

What is the running time of swept away.

Swept Away runs for 1hr 30min.

How do you get tickets for Swept Away?

Check the top of this page for current availability and exclusive offers on Swept Away tickets on TodayTix.

Which theatre is Swept Away at?

Swept Away is at New York's Longacre Theatre, which is located at 220 West 48th Street (between Broadway and 8th Avenue), New York, 10036.

What is Swept Away about?

Get Swept Away tickets and experience a seafaring epic from the Avett Brothers. See Swept Away the musical play on Broadway starting this fall.

Where is Swept Away?

Swept Away is at Longacre Theatre, which is located in New York, NY, USA, 10036.

Who wrote the songs in Swept Away?

The song list in this musical has not been announced but Avett Brothers tunes from various albums, largely from Mignonette , will be featured — fans of their Americana music won’t be disappointed.

Who wrote Swept Away?

The Avett Brothers, a Grammy-nominated folk band, wrote the score while Oscar nominee and Broadway vet John Logan wrote the book.

Who directed Swept Away?

Michael Mayer, a Broadway alum and most known for directing Spring Awakening (and winning a Tony), directs.

Is Swept Away appropriate for kids?

An age recommendation has yet to be finalized, but all Broadway audiences regardless of show must be four and over.

Is Swept Away good?

You could say critics and audiences were swept away: after two sold-out runs, the show also enjoyed critical acclaim. Of the original run, the San Francisco Chronicle said it’s a story of “mythic proportions.”

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Truth, forgiveness: 'Swept Away' is a theatrical vessel for Avett Bros' music

Elizabeth Blair

With songs by The Avett Brothers, Swept Away is inspired by the true story of an 19th century shipwreck in which seamen resorted to cannibalism to survive. Julieta Cervantes/Arena Stage hide caption

With songs by The Avett Brothers, Swept Away is inspired by the true story of an 19th century shipwreck in which seamen resorted to cannibalism to survive.

The musical Swept Away , set to songs by The Avett Brothers, received rave reviews when it premiered at Berkeley Repertory Theatre in early 2022. Now showing at Arena Stage in D.C., it's garnering the same kind of attention.

And with a cast and crew behind the production that have collectively won nine Tony Awards, there's hope the musical will head to Broadway.

Starring Tony Award winner John Gallagher, Jr., Adrian Blake Enscoe and Tony nominated actor Stark Sands, Swept Away premiered at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre.

From a book to an album to the stage

In the early 2000s, Scott Avett's dad recommended he read Neil Hanson's The Custom of the Sea , a true story about a shipwreck off the coast of Africa in 1884. Avett, who grew up in Concord, N.C., says his dad "loves non-fiction survival stories and so this was one of those those books."

Hanson recounts the horrific experiences of four men adrift in a dinghy for 19 days in the burning sun in the middle of the ocean on the verge of starvation. In life or death situations, the "custom of the sea" permitted sacrificing one to save the rest.

Stark Sands (L) and Adrian Blake Enscoe play brothers in Swept Away, a new musical featuring songs by the Avett Brothers. Julieta Cervantes/Arena Stage hide caption

Stark Sands (L) and Adrian Blake Enscoe play brothers in Swept Away, a new musical featuring songs by the Avett Brothers.

As Hanson explains, Captain Tom Dudley made the decision to kill the weakest among them. When they were finally rescued, he told the truth and then stood trial for murder. Dudley's "misfortune was that the British government were determined to outlaw the custom of the sea and his honesty gave them their chance, and they bent and even broke the law to do so," says Hanson in an email.

Scott Avett says he was moved by the captain's honesty, even though it meant confessing to a heinous act, "Because at the end...although the truth was the right thing, it was going to be a cause of suffering."

More than a decade after The Avett Brothers' 2004 album Mignonette was released , they got a call proposing to turn it into a musical. "It made perfect sense because I visualize these things as whole stories," Avett says.

There are some key differences between the story of the Mignonette and the musical. Among other things, the whaling ship sinks off the coast of New Bedford, Mass. The character who first proposes killing an ailing crew member is called simply the "Mate."

Unlike Captain Dudley, the Mate doesn't believe in God and admits he's lead a life of sin. He sings The Avett Brothers' song "Satan Pulls The Strings." By contrast, the character Big Brother is deeply religious and sings the only song the Avetts wrote specifically for the show, "Lord Lay Your Hand On My Shoulder."

'Swept Away' built from pieces of The Avett Brothers' overall catalogue

In Swept Away , the Mate, played by Tony winning actor John Gallagher, Jr., is haunted by the sins of his past. Julieta Cervantes/Arena Stage hide caption

In Swept Away , the Mate, played by Tony winning actor John Gallagher, Jr., is haunted by the sins of his past.

John Logan, whose credits include the movies Skyfall and Gladiator and winning a Tony Award for Red , was brought in to craft the story out of The Avett Brothers' songs. He was thrilled to tackle big themes like redemption and forgiveness, and says: "I hope Swept Away says to the audience, 'What would you do if you were one of these four men in this lifeboat after 21 days?'"

Logan knew some of The Avett Brothers' music but says he now pored over their entire catalogue.

"I was just struck by the poetry of their lyrics, by the intensity of the music, and by the way they could explore different characters through songs and that's what musicals do," he recounts. "I went to them and I said, 'Look, can you give me permission to use any of your songs? And if you don't like how I'm using them, we'll discuss it. And they said, 'Great.'"

"No Hard Feelings" is one of the songs included in the musical Swept Away.

Actor and singer Adrian Blake Enscoe plays Little Brother in Swept Away . He's also in the indie-folk-pop-americana group Bandits On The Run . He says The Avett Brothers' catalogue is "incredible for this tale of morality and mortality, wrestling with darkness and light and faith and what is my meaning."

When Scott Avett first saw the production on stage, "I thought, 'These guys can sing way better than me,'" he laughs. "They have more control than I'll ever have and I think it's beautiful."

'Nothing that is human is alien to me'

In Swept Away, the Mate is haunted by his sins. Actor and singer Stark Sands, who plays Big Brother, believes the musical's themes of reckoning with the truth and seeking forgiveness continue to plague humanity.

Stark Sands (L) and Adrian Blake Enscoe perform "Murder In The City," one of The Avett Brothers' songs in the musical is "Murder In The City."

"I think that right now we're living at a time when there are some people who don't want to face the past," Sands says. "They don't want to acknowledge the sort of awful things that we have done as a race, as a nation... This man that we are following in the story, the Mate, he's done some horrible things that he admits to over the course of the play and all we're asking him to do is just say them out loud."

For John Logan, Swept Away is about having empathy for all, including "those who have sinned." Over his computer are the words: "Nothing that is human is alien to me," a translation of a famous quote that is linked to the Roman playwright Terence but has been used by the philosopher Seneca and others subsequently.

"So when I look at the actions of the Mate in this story, I say he's a human being just like I am, and I'm capable of the same exaltation, the same joy, the same degradation, and the same violence, because nothing that is human is alien to me," he says.

This story was edited for broadcast and digital by Meghan Collins Sullivan and produced for radio by Isabella Gomez-Sarmiento .

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About This Show

From the chart-topping folk-rock band The Avett Brothers comes “a spellbinding tale” ( The Washington Post ) of shipwreck, salvation and brotherhood set on the high seas.

An odyssey of “mythic proportions” ( San Francisco Chronicle ), SWEPT AWAY features a book by Tony Award ® -winner John Logan ( Red , Moulin Rouge! The Musical ), direction by Tony Award-winner Michael Mayer ( Spring Awakening , American Idiot ), and choreography by Tony Award nominee David Neumann ( Hadestown ).

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Everything you need to know about 'Swept Away' on Broadway

This musical tale of survival, brotherhood, and redemption is set to music by the rock band The Avett Brothers and written by Tony Award winner John Logan.

Prepare for life-and-death choices and wave of emotions. The new Broadway musical Swept Away tells the haunting story of how four men survive after a violent storm sinks their whaling ship off the coast of New Bedford, Massachusetts in 1888.

Inspired by an actual a 19th-century British shipwreck, the show features songs from the catalog of the folk-rock band The Avett Brothers, a book by Tony Award-winning playwright John Logan ( Red ), and direction by Michael Mayer ( Spring Awakening ). Performances begin October 29 at the Longacre Theatre .

Swept Away arrives on Broadway buoyed by critical praise from a run Washington, D.C., where one review called it “a bold new musical.” Get swept up in Swept Away for yourself, but before you do, read more about the show embarking on its maiden New York voyage.

Check back for information on Swept Away tickets on New York Theatre Guide.

What is Swept Away about?

Swept Away is a musical set in 1888. The story revolves around four men on a whaling voyage that takes a tragic turn when a massive storm strikes, sinking their vessel.

Inspired by The Avett Brothers’ 2004 album Mignonette , about four men stranded in the Atlantic Ocean after a 19th-century shipwreck, the musical is woven with folk-, blues-, and rock-flavored songs. As the characters confront their pasts and deepest fears, the story explores themes of survival, brotherhood, sacrifice, and redemption.

Where is Swept Away playing?

Beginning October 29, 2024, Swept Away is at the Longacre Theatre at 220 W. 48th St. between Seventh and Eighth Avenues. Originally part of a three-theatre complex, the venue opened in 1927. The Shubert Organization took ownership in 1930. The theatre is now named for the longtime Shubert president.

Plays and musicals that have recently run at the 1,077-seat theatre include Lempicka , Leopoldstadt , Macbeth , and The Prom .

How long is Swept Away ?

Swept Away runs 90 minutes without intermission. This is a typical running time for a Broadway musical. They typically run between 90 minutes and 3 hours and may include a 15-minute intermission.

This running time is based on previous productions of Swept Away , and it is subject to change when the Broadway run begins.

What days is Swept Away playing?

Swept Away will play Tuesday through Sunday, with two performances on Wednesdays and Saturdays and no performances on Mondays.

For the most up-to-date weekly performance schedule, including one-off changes, please visit the Swept Away page .

When did Swept Away premiere?

Swept Away premieres on Broadway on October 29, 2024, 20 years after the release of the Avett Brothers album Mignonette , on which the show is based. Check out the show's full timeline below.

• 2004: Mignonette , The Avett Brothers' third studio album, came out in July. Its title, along with thematic elements, were inspired by the 1884 shipwreck of the Mignonette, which led to a legal case concerning cannibalism.
• 2022: Originally set to debut in 2020 but delayed by the pandemic, the world premiere of Swept Away was staged at Berkeley Repertory Theatre in Berkeley, California. The show ran from January 9 to March 6.
• 2023: The show’s pre-Broadway engagement at Arena Stage in Washington, D.C., ran November 25, 2023 to January 14, 2024.
• 2024: The Broadway production of Swept Away begins October 29 at the Longacre Theatre.

Who wrote the Swept Away musical?

The Swept Away musical features a book by John Logan, who wrote screenplays for Skyfall and Gladiator and the script for the Tony-winning play Red . Other Broadway writing credits include I’ll Eat You Last: A Chat with Sue Mengers , The Last Ship , and Moulin Rouge! The Musical .

The music and lyrics are by The Avett Brothers, an American folk rock band from North Carolina. Band members include brothers Scott and Seth Avett alongside Bob Crawford and Joe Kwon.

Much of the musical’s score is drawn from Mignonette , a 2004 Avett Brothers album inspired by a 19th-century shipwreck. There are also songs from the band's other albums and original music written for the show.

Swept Away characters

Characters in the Swept Away musical include the four sailors adrift in the lifeboat, along with other crew members caught in the shipwreck.

• Little Brother: a young man in search of adventure.
• Big Brother: a man of faith determined to protect his younger sibling.
• Captain: a seasoned, no-nonsense seafarer.
• Mate: a sailor with a ne'er-do-well charm.
• Ensemble members step in as other sailors.

Who is in the cast of Swept Away on Broadway?

The cast of the Broadway premiere of Swept Away musical has yet to be announced. At the Berkeley and D.C. runs the four featured roles were played by Wayne Duvall (Captain), Adrian Blake Enscoe (Little Brother), John Gallagher, Jr. (Mate), and Stark Sands (Big Brother).

Swept Away songs

The folk, bluegrass, and rock songs in Swept Away feature lyrics and music by The Avett Brothers. Here are all the songs from the musical's most recent production at Arena Stage; this list is subject to change for the Broadway production.

• “A Gift for Melody Anne”
• “Ain’t No Man/Lord Lay Your Hand”
• “Complainte d’un Matelot Mourant”
• “Go to Sleep”
• “Hard Worker”
• “Lord Lay Your Hand On My Shoulder”
• “May It Last”
• “Murder in the City”
• “No Hard Feelings”
• “Nothing Short of Thankful”
• “Satan Pulls the Strings”
• “Swept Away”
• “Through My Prayers”
• “The Once and Future Carpenter”

What awards has Swept Away won?

The new Broadway production of Swept Away will be in the running for the 2024-25 season’s awards, including Tony Awards.

Major productions of Swept Away

Swept Away has had two high-profile U.S. productions in advance of the Broadway run. The first was in 2022 at Berkeley Rep in Berkeley, California, followed by a 2023 run at Washington, D.C.'s Arena Stage. If the musical is a success, Swept Away could have a long future, leading to more productions throughout the country and world.

Fun facts about Swept Away

• Thanks, Dad! The Avett Brothers’ father recommended they read Neil Hanson’s The Custom of the Sea , a nonfiction book about an 1884 shipwreck off the coast of Africa. They were inspired and made their own creative changes when they later wrote Mignonette and Swept Away about shipwrecks.
• On May 17, 2024, Scott and Seth Avett announced that their show was coming to Broadway during a concert in Queens, New York. The four stars of the show’s earlier two runs performed the title song with the band.
• Swept Away 's set designer, Rachel Hauck, and choreographer, David Neumann, also worked on Hadestown , playing across the street from Swept Away at the Walter Kerr Theatre .
• Cannibalism is a tricky topic for a musical, but Swept Away isn't the first show to mine that unsettling theme. Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler famously did so in Sweeney Todd .

Get tickets to Swept Away on Broadway

Swept Away is a poignant tale of resilience and the enduring human spirit. See what the wave of excitement is all about, and sail on over to the musical this season.

Visit our fall preview page to learn more about all fall 2025 Broadway shows and discover more content.

Photo credit: The cast of Swept Away in Washington, D.C. (Photos by Julieta Cervantes)

Originally published on Jul 22, 2024 15:57

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‘Come From Away’ tour to perform at U.S. military installations

The national touring cast of “Come From Away” will perform a live concert version of the musical for the military community.

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The United Service Organizations (USO) and No Guarantees Productions have announced that for the first time in more than 50 years, the national tour of a Broadway show will perform an exclusive live concert version of the show at U.S. military installations; the touring company of “Come From Away” will make stops at three.

“Come From Away” tells the true story of the people of Gander, Newfoundland, and the 7,000 stranded airline passengers who were forced to land there when U.S. air space was closed on Sept. 11, 2001.

The first stop on the tour will be just outside Dayton, Ohio, on Aug. 20 at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, which was one of the first bases that was notified on Sept. 11. The second stop will be in Kentucky on Aug. 21 at Fort Knox. 

The third stop will be on the Kentucky-Tennessee border at Fort Campbell. At this stop, the “Come From Away” company will participate in base engagement activities, which will include interactive unit visits, a visit to the USO Fort Campbell Center and a visit to the Gander Memorial. The Gander Memorial commemorates the more than 200 members of the 101st Airborne Division who lost their lives in 1985 in a plane crash in Gander, Newfoundland — the same location where “Come From Away” takes place.

In 2022, No Guarantees Productions approached the USO with the idea of bringing a Broadway production directly to service members and their families. “Come From Away,” given its story and themes around family and forging connections, was determined to be a great fit for the tour. Over the past 12 months, the teams have worked together to make the tour a reality.

The USO was founded in 1941 as a nonprofit dedicated to those who serve in the U.S. military and their families during their time in uniform. According to the organization’s records, the last time a Broadway show was performed for U.S. military families in this format was “Funny Girl” in 1971 and, before that, “Hello, Dolly!” from 1966-1967.

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