Denzel Washington’s son was instrumental his latest Broadway appearance.
At the ESSENCE Black Women in Hollywood Awards, Othello co-producer Kandi Burruss tells PEOPLE how John David Washington helped usher the celebrated actor to a role in the upcoming production. Directed by Kenny Leon, the revival of the Williams Shakespeare tragedy — which also stars Jake Gyllenhaal — began previews on Feb. 24 at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre in New York City, and is set to open on March 23.
The first conversations with Denzel about Othello came during production on the 2022 revival of The Piano Lesson. The August Wilson play, which follows two siblings fighting over their family’s ancestral piano, starred John David. Burruss and her husband Todd Tucker — who together are co-producers for Othello behind lead producer Brian Anthony Moreland — also helped produce The Piano Lesson.
“We would see Denzel around that time, and that’s when Brian and Denzel initiated the conversation,” Burruss says.
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Othello sees Denzel star as the titular character, joined by Gyllenhaal as the scheming Iago and Molly Osborne as Othello’s wife Desdemona. Andrew Burnap, Anthony Michael Lopez, Daniel Pearce, Kimber Elayne Sprawl, Neal Bledsoe, Julee Cerda, Ezra Knight, Gene Gillette and Rob Heaps fill out the cast. Ty Fanning, Ben Graney, Christina Sajous, Greg Wood and Sarah Thorn comprise the ensemble.
Even in previews, Burruss shares that Othello has garnered tons of support. In fact, with seats reportedly selling as high as $921, the show has already broken box office records, grossing $2.8 million alone last week — more than any play has ever made in 7 days on Broadway.
“We’re very thankful from the support from the fans, and believe me: Jake, Denzel, all the people in the show, they are here to bring it and you will not be disappointed,” Burruss tells PEOPLE.
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The Grammy winner is also hopeful Othello is the production that secures her the Tony Award
“I’m praying. But you know, I pray every time,” says Burruss, who also produced last year’s revival of The Wiz. “Every time you have to go into it feeling like, ‘This is the one,’ you know? I’m going to speak it into existence.”
Tickets for Othello are now on sale. The limited run is currently scheduled to close on Sunday, June 8.
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