Halloween may be over, but musical horror fans are still in luck at the New World Stages. Teeth, based on the 2007 horror comedy, is playing at the Off-Broadway theater and playwright Michael R. Jackson recently visited Sherri Shepherd’s daytime talk show to discuss the new musical- including the use of fake blood.
“Initially in the run, just the first two rows were a dedicated ‘splash zone.’ We then give you a ‘Teeth’ poncho that you can wear to protect yourself from the blood,” explained Jackson in the interview. “But, it proved to be so popular that we’ve expanded it to the whole front section.” Watch the whole segment now!
Based on the screenplay by Mitchell Lichtenstein, TEETH features book and music by Anna K. Jacobs, book and lyrics by Pulitzer Prize & Tony Award winner Michael R. Jackson, direction by Obie Award winner Sarah Benson and choreography by Raja Feather Kelly.
The cast of TEETH includes Alyse Alan Louis, three-time Tony Award nominee Andy Karl (Groundhog Day, Rocky), Will Connolly (Once, “The Gilded Age”), Jason Gotay (Bring it On, A Bronx Tale) and Jared Loftin (Gigantic; Tick, Tick…Boom!), Courtney Bassett (Titanique, The Great Comet), Jenna Rose Husli (Sister Act), Micaela Lamas (Dear Evan Hansen), Madison McBride (Next to Normal), Sydney Parra (Six), and Wren Rivera (Jagged Little Pill). The understudies are Julia Bain (Waitress), Sean Doherty (Jagged Little Pill), Michael Doliner (Elf: The Musical), Kyra Kennedy (Beautiful)and James Sasser (Riverdance).
Teeth is a sharp tale of revenge and transformation that tears through a culture of shame and repressed desire one delightfully unhinged song at a time. The musical follows Dawn O’Keefe, an evangelical Christian teen struggling to be an exemplar of purity amongst her community of fellow Promise Keeper Girls. Her stepbrother, Brad —alienated by his repressive upbringing by his fanatical Pastor father, which drew him to the online camaraderie of the Truthseeker men’s support group—is haunted by an indelible incident from his and Dawn’s past. As Dawn’s desires become tested and twisted by the men in her life, she discovers a deadly secret not even she understands: when men violate her, her body bites back—literally. Crackling with irrepressible desire and ancient rage, Teeth is a dark horror comedy conjuring the legend of one girl whose sexual curse may also be her salvation.
