Finian's Rainbow Broadway Beginning: Follow The Dream

By Christopher Moore, Broadway Magazine

Follow the people who follow the dream. The magic of Finian's Rainbow returns to Broadway in a new revival that opens this month with a host of exceptional Broadway talents performing their theatrical alchemy. Unusually timely and notoriously challenging for a Broadway musical, Finian's Rainbow deals with issues like Immigration, Economic Crisis, and Racism in singularly Broadway fashion. Broadway.tv and Broadway Magazine had the opportunity to talk with the stars about the joy and the magic of Finian's Rainbow.

Broadway Show: Finian's Rainbow

"Yip Harburg (lyricist for Finian's Rainbow) did say, I read somewhere, that he wanted to laugh racial intolerance out of existence, and he does it in a wonderfully humorous way. So, he addresses that subject which still needs to be addressed, I think," reflects Broadway great Jim Norton on Finian's Rainbow, adding "Like all great works of art, it doesn't lose its relevance."

"It's pretty much a difficult show up until now to put on because of some of the subjects in the show ," concedes star Terri White, who plays Dotti in the production.

"For me, I'm not going to give away my age, but my father, when he was finally able to vote…to go from that point to having Obama in office - it's very exciting," shares Terri White with Broadway.tv and Broadway Magazine.

"I think anything that will open a dialogue - whether it be a film, or a documentary, or a book, a magazine article, or a Broadway show - will make people talk about it is good," shares Broadway star Cheyenne Jackson, who plays Woody in the production. Cheyenne Jackson first became involved in the show during its run at the fabled Encores! Series in New York.

Excited by the challenge of "making something that was written in 1946 palatable and interesting," Cheyenne Jackson and the entire company of Finian's Rainbow are still struck by how timely the themes of Finian's Rainbow are today.

They are not alone. In his enthusiastic review of the Encores production, New York Times critic Charles Isherwood wrote "most everything else proves surprisingly ageless, even timely, particularly those jokes about the American passion for acquisition."

"There are many different story lines that happening Finian's Rainbow. We have an immigrant story, the story of Sharon and her father, who come over from Ireland looking for a better life... There is another story that deals with an economic crisis. We have a credit mishap in our show. That seems to be extremely relevant right now. Then we also deal with a really huge issue in our culture, which is Racism, and we have a man who learns the errors of his ways through magic and learning to embrace a community. I think the message of community is a real strong one in this show as well," reflects the dynamic Kate Baldwin who plays Sharon in the production (Mr. Isherwood called her "a discovery" in the role).

"I've known this show, I guess, most of my life. As a kid, I remember hearing those songs on the radio. Then, in 1964, I saw it at the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin, and I was just blown away at how wonderful it was. I little realized, all these years later, that I’d actually be taking part in it," smiles Jim Norton, clearly enjoying his journey.

With joy and passion and great enthusiasm, the cast and crew of the new Finian's Rainbow are ready to bring their magic to Broadway. We can't wait for this Rainbow's Broadway beginning. Follow them on Broadway.tv for more video interviews and show highlights.