Video: The Wait Is Over! Steven Pasquale & Company Are Bringing WAITING FOR LEFTY to CSC

Clifford Odets’ classic Waiting for Lefty is back in the spotlight! A new production of the politically charged play begins performances at Classic Stage Company on October 15, marking the directorial debut of Broadway favorite Steven Pasquale.

First performed in 1935, Waiting for Lefty centers on a group of New York City taxi drivers considering a strike for better wages and working conditions. More than 90 years later, its themes of economic inequality, workers’ rights, and collective action remain strikingly relevant.

“It’s just a spectacular piece of writing and a highly political play in this moment where we’re asking a lot of the same questions that they were asking in 1935,” Pasquale told BroadwayWorld’s Richard Ridge.

This new production brings a fresh approach to Odets’ work, incorporating live music, movement, and a streamlined ensemble cast. Historically inspired labor and protest songs help bring the story to life, emphasizing the power of people coming together to demand change.

Clifford Odets’ Waiting for Lefty will feature Tala Ashe, Raffi Barsoumian, Austin Durant, Greg Hildreth, Adam Kantor, Doireann Mac Mahon, Zach McNally, Sahar Milani, Cameron Scoggins, and Henry Stram.

“The music that we’re singing isn’t just art, it’s a tool of the people,” explained Milani. “This music was used to disseminate ideas, to galvanize people, historically, to unify people. And so I think having that tool exist within this text makes so much sense.”