Broadway Center Stage: Chess | The Kennedy Center

This complex rock opera has been seen around the world. The pawns in this drama form a love triangle: the loutish American chess star, the earnest Russian champion, and the assistant who is torn between them. From Bangkok to Budapest, the players, lovers, politicians, and spies are manipulated to the pulse of a monumental rock score. Music by Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson; lyrics by Tim Rice. Directed by Tony Award® winner Michael Mayer (Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Spring Awakening) with a new book by Emmy® and Golden Globe Award®–winning writer Danny Strong (Empire, The Butler, Game Change), Chess stars Raúl Esparza (Company, the Kennedy Center’s Sunday in the Park with George, Merrily We Roll Along) as American chess champion Freddie; Ramin Karimloo (Anastasia) as rival Russian chess star Anatoly Sergievsky; Tony Award® winner Ruthie Ann Miles (The King and I, Here Lies Love) as Anatoly’s wife, Svetlana; and Tony Award® winner Karen Olivo (West Side Story, In the Heights) as Florence, a remarkable Hungarian refugee who becomes the center of their emotional triangle. Joining them are Bradley Dean (Dear Evan Hansen) as Ivan Molokov, Sean Allan Krill (Honeymoon in Vegas) as Walter de Courcey, and Bryce Pinkham (A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder) as the Arbiter. Part of Broadway Center Stage In a semi-staged concert format and joined by talent direct from Broadway and here in our nation’s capital, these performances shine a spotlight on the emotional heart of three beloved stories in compelling new ways—placing the artists, their vision, and their work Center Stage! February 14 - 18, 2018 at The Kennedy Center Subscribe to The Kennedy Center! http://bit.ly/2gNFrtb