Encores! Wonderful Town, Starring Anika Noni Rose and Aisha Jackson, Completes Casting

The Encores! production of Wonderful Town, starring Tony Award winner Anika Noni Rose and Aisha Jackson as sisters Ruth and Eileen, has announced complete casting. The show will run at New York City Center from April 30 through May 11.

Joining Rose and Jackson are Jimmy Ray Bennett as Officer Lonigan, Etai Benson as Frank Lippencott, Allison Blackwell as Mrs. Wade, DeWitt Fleming Jr. as Speedy Valenti, Jessie Hooker-Bailey as Helen, Javier Muñoz as Robert Baker, Fergie Phillippe as Wreck, John Rapson as Chick Clark and Daniel Torres as Mr. Appopolous.

Rounding out the ensemble are Jonathan Duvelson, David Foley Jr., Lindsay Roberts Greene, Marc Heitzman, Sarah Michele Lindsey, Kate Louissaint, Alicia Lundgren, Morgan Marcell, Robin Masella, Dario Natarelli, Michael Olaribigbe, Patricia Phillips, Renée Reid, Samantha Siegel, Phumzile Sojola, Nicholas Ward, Jacob Keith Watson, Annaliese Wilbur and Richard Riaz Yoder.

Premiering on Broadway in 1953, Wonderful Town features a book by Joseph A. Fields and Jerome Chodorov with lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green. Zhailon Levingston (Cats: The Jellicle Ball) directs the new production, with Mary-Mitchell Campbell leading the Encores! Orchestra.

In 1935, sisters Ruth, an aspiring writer, and Eileen, an aspiring actress, move from Ohio to Greenwich Village to pursue their artistic ambitions, overcome heartbreak, encounter an assortment of colorful characters and ultimately find love. Featuring memorable tunes like “Ohio” and “One Hundred Easy Ways,” Wonderful Town is a celebration of what makes New York the greatest city in the world: welcoming people from all over who come to fulfill their dreams.

The 2000 Encores! production of Wonderful Town, starring Donna Murphy and Laura Benanti, transferred to Broadway in 2003.

Also coming up in the 2025 Encores! series is Love Life.