Vanessa Williams Joins Producing Team Of Broadway-Bound Louis Armstrong Musical ‘A Wonderful World’ As Full Casting Announced
deadline.comEXCLUSIVE: Tony Award nominee Vanessa Williams has joined the lead producing team for the Broadway-aimed A Wonderful World, a bio-musical about jazz icon Louis Armstrong starring James Monroe Iglehart.
Williams’ involvement comes as producers announce the full cast for the musical: In addition to the previously announced Iglehart as Armstrong, the principal cast of A Wonderful World will feature Ta’Rea Campbell (The Lion King, The Book of Mormon) as Lucille Wilson, Jennie Harney-Fleming (The Color Purple, Hamilton) as Lil Hardin, Brennyn Lark (Six, Les Misérables) as Alpha Smith and Khalifa White (Caroline, or Change, Little Shop of Horrors) as Daisy Parker.
Following Armstrong’s musical path from New Orleans to Chicago, A Wonderful World will premiere this year at the Saenger Theatre in New Orleans (October 1-8) before moving to the Cadillac Palace Theatre in Chicago (October 11-29).
Producers plan to move the show to Broadway, although dates and other details have not been announced. “I became interested in joining the producing team after I worked with Carl White and Greg Rae on a play I am starring in and co-producing called One Reach Away,” Williams said in a statement. “They told me about this Louis Armstrong piece, and I had to read it.
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