Next spring, six-time Tony Award-winner Audra McDonald will return to Broadway to star in Shuffle Along, Or, The Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed. Produced by Scott Rudin, the piece tells the backstory of Shuffle Along, the 1921 musical comedy by Flournoy Miller and Aubrey Lyles with music and lyrics by Eubie Blake and Noble Sissle. Arriving on Broadway seemingly doomed to fail, the work bucked the odds to become a runaway success that helped to launch the careers of Lottie Gee — who will be portrayed on Broadway by Audra, Josephine Baker, and Paul Robeson, among others.
Opening on April 21, 2016 at the Music Box Theater, Shuffle Along is a collaboration between Audra, George C. Wolfe, and Savion Glover, with music supervision, arrangements, and orchestrations by Daryl Waters.