Morrissey On Broadway: Former Smiths Frontman Announces Concert Stand

Morrissey, who will release an album of classic 1960s and ’70s covers on May 24, has booked his first Broadway engagement May 2-11 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre.

The announcement of the gig describes it as an “intimate yet exciting exploration of Morrissey’s expansive career.” On the upcoming album, California Son, the pop singer and former Smiths frontman delivers versions of Joni Mitchell, Dionne Warwick and Bob Dylan as well as lesser-known artists like Jobraith and Phil Ochs. Green Day’s Billy Joe Armstrong, Grizzly Bear’s Ed Droste and Young the Giant’s Sameer Gadhia appear on the album as collaborators.

Last year, Morrissey released a well-received cover of the Pretenders’ “Back on the Chain Gang.”

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Although the Broadway stand will be a first for Morrissey, Broadway is no stranger to pop and rock concerts. Joan Jett and the Blackhearts played the very theater Morrissey will visit way way back in ’89. Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Barry Manilow, even Hugh Jackman are among the performers who have staged concert-style Broadway productions.

Biggest of all was Springsteen on Broadway, Bruce Springsteen’s massive, sold-out, Tony-honored production that ended its run last December as the most successful one-man show ever on Broadway, grossing somewhere near $110M during its 58 weeks (and that doesn’t include the resale market, where Springsteen on Broadway tickets typically sold in the $1,700-plus turf).

Comparisons to Springsteen, of course, are as absurd as they are unfair, and Morrissey’s announcement will come as very welcome news to his incredibly loyal fanbase. California Son is his 12th album and while he is not a Top 40 staple, enough people have grown up on the Smiths and his solo material (especially in LA) that he is a frequent pop-culture reference. He popped up in a scene in last summer’s Marvel movie Ant-Man and the Wasp, whose director, Peyton Reed, once played in a Smiths cover band. Tickets go on sale Friday.

Here are the Morrissey Broadway residency dates:

5/2/2019 – New York, NY – Lunt-Fontanne Theater

5/3/2019 – New York, NY – Lunt-Fontanne Theater

5/4/2019 – New York, NY – Lunt-Fontanne Theater

5/7/2019 – New York, NY – Lunt-Fontanne Theater

5/8/2019 – New York, NY – Lunt-Fontanne Theater

5/10/2019 – New York, NY – Lunt-Fontanne Theater

5/11/2019 – New York, NY – Lunt-Fontanne Theater