“I’ve been in a couple of different shows where I’ve said, ‘You made a musical of this?!’ And this is one of them,” Andy Karl recently said of his latest project- Teeth, which returns to the stage this fall.
“It’s done so well- there’s tongue and cheek, but also it’s pushing the boundaries of misogyny, religion, women’s rights, and putting women on an equal Playing Field with the masculine. It’s really exciting to do that with a show that is also so funny and wild,” he continued.
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.
“I think [Teeth] is very topical right now,” added Alyse Alan Louis. “To discover a feminine identity and to be a woman- that’s still something that we have to break down our conditioning. Being in this country right now as a woman is its own thing! I hope when people laugh at the show, they’re also getting a gut punch. These themes… we are dealing with them every day.”
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.
In this video, watch as the cast gives a very special sneak peek before the start of previews!
