New Musical Featuring The Avett Brothers Music, ‘Swept Away,’ Opens On Broadway

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Pictured (L-R): Wayne Duvall, Stark Sands, Scott Avett, Seth Avett, Bob Crawford, John Gallagher, Jr. and Adrian Blake Enscoe. Photo: Alyssa Greenberg.jpg

Swept Away, a new Broadway musical featuring the music of The Avett Brothers, opened recently at the Longacre Theatre.

The production tells a tale of shipwreck, salvation and brotherhood set on the high seas and incorporates songs from The Avett Brothers’ 2004 album, Mignonette, and other tracks, plus a new song—“Lord Lay Your Hand on My Shoulder”—written by Seth Avett expressly for the production. The Avett Brothers joined the cast on stage for a special curtain call performance of the show’s title track.

The principal cast members, reprising their roles from the show’s previous sold-out runs at Berkeley Repertory in 2022 and Washington DC’s Arena Stage in 2023, include John Gallagher, Jr. (Spring Awakening), Stark Sands (Kinky Boots), Adrian Blake Enscoe (Apple TV+’s Dickinson) and Wayne Duvall (1984). The Avett Brothers joined the Swept Away principals for a performance on NBC’s Today Show last week.

The Broadway debut of  Swept Away is the latest in a highlight-filled year for The Avetts. In May, they released their first new album in five years, The Avett Brothers (now a Grammy nominee for Best Recording Package) followed by an extensive tour and appearances on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, CBS Saturday Morning, NPR’s All Things Considered and more. The Avett Brothers were also recently presented with The North Carolina Award, their home state’s highest honor, by Gov. Roy Cooper.

Lorie Hollabaugh
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