Complete casting has been set for Imitation of Life, the upcoming world premiere musical from John Legend and Lynn Nottage, in a co-production between The Shed and National Black Theatre. The limited six-week engagement begins performances November 21, opens December 3, and runs through January 3, 2027.
Based on Fannie Hurst’s 1933 novel and its two subsequent film adaptations, the musical follows two mothers, one Black and one white, raising daughters together in 1920s and ’30s Atlantic City and New York. Nottage, a Pulitzer winner for Sweat, wrote the book, with Legend composing his first-ever musical score. Whitney White directs. The previously announced leads include Adrienne Warren as Delilah, Jessica Vosk as Bea, Michael Luwoye as Elroy, Charlie Thurston as Archie, Aleyse Shannon as Adult Peola, Scarlett London Diviney as Young Peola, and Lily Gilliam as Young Jessie.
The production’s structure, a co-production between The Shed and National Black Theatre, places two institutions with very different histories and missions behind the same original musical, pairing The Shed’s resources as a major cultural venue with National Black Theatre’s decades-long focus on centering Black stories and Black audiences. That partnership model reflects a growing pattern of major venues co-producing directly with Black theatrical institutions rather than simply hosting Black-led work on their own stages, a structural distinction that affects creative control and institutional credit as much as programming.
The newly revealed ensemble includes Karli Dinardo, E.J. Hamilton, Sheldon Henry, Dan Horn, Aliah James, Evan Latta, Kyle Taylor Parker, Morgan Jeanell Robbins, Martell Dimitri Ruffin, Clifton Samuels, Carla R. Stewart, and Ryan Vona, with Kayla Davion serving as Delilah standby, alongside swings and understudies Zach Bravo, Skylar Geary, Dava Huesca, Malik Kitchen, Zoe Brooke Reed, and Zoe Rock. The creative team includes choreography by Baye & Asa, music supervision by Brandon Michael Nase, music direction by Ben Covello, orchestrations by Bryan Carter and Charlie Rosen, scenic design by Chloe Lamford, costume design by Qween Jean, lighting design by Natasha Katz, and sound design by Gareth Owen. Producers include Legend and Mike Jackson of Get Lifted Film Co., Tommy and Mudge of Crocodile Eyes, Universal Theatrical Group, Sue Wagner, John Johnson, and Mickey Liddell and Pete Shilaimon of LD Entertainment.
With a full cast now locked in and performances just weeks away, the next marker to watch will be how audiences and critics respond to Legend’s debut as a stage composer tackling material this historically and emotionally dense.