“If a dirt-poor country boy, with no education, no opportunities, faced with great troubles, can make it through life doing what he loves, so can you.” — Bobby Rush
Casting is set for the world premiere of “Slippin’ Through the Cracks: The Bobby Rush Musical,” a new stage production telling the life story of blues legend Bobby Rush. The musical runs a limited engagement October 20 through November 1 at New Stage Theatre’s Jane Reid-Petty Theatre Center in Jackson, Mississippi.
Three actors will bring Rush’s journey to life across different chapters of his story: Mark Henderson as Older Bobby Rush, Rajeer Alford as Bobby Rush, and Jaden White as Young Bobby Rush.
The musical traces Rush’s path from a sharecropper’s son sneaking into juke joints, through the segregated blues scene in Chicago alongside Muddy Waters and B.B. King, to the world stage. It’s built around Rush’s own message of perseverance and joy, told through his music, his lyrics, and a book he co-wrote with the show’s conceiver, Stephen Lloyd Helper.
The ensemble, which brings blues icons like Chuck Berry, James Brown, B.B. King, Koko Taylor, Muddy Waters, and Howlin’ Wolf to life alongside Rush, also includes Joy Brashears Amerson, Grady Champion, Nancy Cheney, Melessie Clark, Jayla Lomax, Nicholas Patrick, Quinton Powell, Chris Roebuck, Vershaune Stamps, and Joe Tomberlin.
Helper co-directs alongside Matthew Johnson Harris, who also choreographs. The creative team includes set and projection design by Omid Akbari, costume design by Theresa J. Bush and Deonica Davis, lighting design by Anna Dunbar, sound design by Callie Jackson, and musical direction and orchestrations by Jeremy Jones.
The production arrives as the 92-year-old, three-time Grammy winner is having one of the biggest moments of his seven-decade career. Rush is featured in Ryan Coogler’s Oscar-nominated hit “Sinners,” starring Michael B. Jordan, a film that went on to earn 16 Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, at the 2026 ceremony. To celebrate the film’s music, Rush joined Buddy Guy, Shaboozey, Brittany Howard, Miles Caton, and Raphael Saadiq to turn the Oscar stage into a juke joint. He also has a Grammy-nominated album with Kenny Wayne Shepherd, played his first-ever Grand Ole Opry set, and performed on Austin City Limits in 2025. A new documentary on his career, “King of the Chitlin’ Circuit,” began airing on Mississippi Public Broadcasting in August and hits PBS nationally in late November.
Rush, who has 16 Blues Music Awards to go with his three Grammy wins and has been inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame, the Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame, and the Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame, remains a fixture on the road. He plays Radio City Music Hall on October 1 for Buddy Guy’s 90th birthday celebration and has international dates on the books through the year, including stops in Tokyo and London.
Tickets for “Slippin’ Through the Cracks” are available at NewStageTheatre.com.