Sioux Falls, SD — Emmy Award®-winning actor Richard Thomas is confirmed to star as Atticus Finch for the complete third touring season of the First National Tour of the history-making production of TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, Academy Award® winner Aaron Sorkin’s new play, directed by Tony Award® winner Bartlett Sher and based on Harper Lee’s classic novel. The production is currently on a multi-year national tour across North America.
The Washington Pavilion will host five performances January 12–14, 2024. Tickets go on sale to the public July 22.
Richard Thomas as Atticus Finch has been embraced by critics and audiences alike. His performance has been called “Easily the most powerful work I’ve seen from Richard Thomas” (BWW Charlotte), “A memorable performance rarely seen in a touring Broadway production” (Curtain Up Phoenix), and “Sheer perfection — this role was made to be played by Thomas” (Around the Town Chicago). The Buffalo News proclaims “Both modestly human and divinely heroic. All rise for Richard Thomas,” and the Dallas Voice declares “Richard Thomas as Atticus Finch is at the height of his career.” Complete casting will be announced later.
Since its tour launch in March 2022, the First National Tour of TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD has played more than 500 performances in 44 cities, been seen by more than 1 million theatergoers (1,107,617 as of July 2, 2023) and hailed as “A must-see” (Northwest Herald, Chicago), “The most powerful telling of this story you’ll ever experience” (St. Paul Pioneer-Press) and “Amazing — a perfect 10!” (KOA News Radio, Denver).
TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD holds the record as the highest-grossing American play in Broadway history. It began performances on November 1, 2018, at the Shubert Theatre and played to sold-out houses until the Broadway shutdown in March 2020. On February 26, 2020, TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD became the first-ever Broadway play to perform at New York’s Madison Square Garden, in front of approximately 18,000 New York City public school students, also marking the largest attendance at a single performance of a play ever in world theater. The production resumed performances on October 5, 2021, and concluded its run at the Shubert Theatre on January 16, 2022. On May 20, 2023, TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD concluded its run on London’s West End, playing for more than a year to packed houses at the Gielgud Theatre.
Set in Alabama in 1934, Harper Lee’s enduring story of racial injustice and childhood innocence centers on one of the most venerated characters in American literature, small-town lawyer Atticus Finch. The cast of characters includes Atticus’s daughter Scout, her brother Jem, their housekeeper and caretaker Calpurnia, their visiting friend Dill, and a mysterious neighbor, the reclusive Arthur “Boo” Radley. The other indelible residents of Maycomb, Alabama, are Bob Ewell, Tom Robinson, prosecutor Horace Gilmer, Judge Taylor and Mayella Ewell.
TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD is designed by Miriam Buether, with costumes by Ann Roth, lighting by Jennifer Tipton, sound by Scott Lehrer and an original score by Adam Guettel. Musical direction is by Kimberly Grigsby, hair and wig design by Campbell Young Associates, casting by The Telsey Office, and design adaptation and supervision by Edward Pierce. The national tour is produced by Barry Diller.
For more information, visit WashingtonPavilion.org.
PRAISE FOR RICHARD THOMAS AS ATTICUS FINCH
“Richard Thomas raises TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD to new heights. Thomas is a force to be reckoned with.” - The Suffolk Journal
“Richard Thomas anchors the show with a complex performance that is by turns thoughtful, impassioned, deeply sensitive and prickly.” - Daily Herald, Chicago
“Richard Thomas is remarkable. Wondrously paced and thrillingly theatrical” - Houston Press
BIOGRAPHY
RICHARD THOMAS (Atticus Finch) (he/him). Broadway/Off-Broadway: The Little Foxes (Tony nom.), You Can’t Take It with You, Race, Democracy, Incident at Vichy, The Stendhal Syndrome (Lucille Lortel Award), A Naked Girl on the Appian Way, An Enemy of the People, Tiny Alice, The Front Page, The Fifth of July, innumerable Shakespeare productions, and his professional debut at 7 years old in Sunrise at Campobello on Broadway. National tours: The Humans (Elliot Norton Award) and Twelve Angry Men. Thomas is an Emmy Award-winning actor for his performance in the iconic series The Waltons. Film: Last Summer; Red Sky at Morning; September 30, 1955; Wonder Boys; Taking Woodstock; The Unforgivable. TV: The Americans, Billions, Tell Me Your Secrets and the Netflix series Ozark.
About Washington Pavilion Management, Inc. (WPMI)
Washington Pavilion Management, Inc. is a private 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and the largest arts organization in the state. The management company oversees and programs two historic City of Sioux Falls facilities: the Washington Pavilion of Arts and Science and the Orpheum Theater Center. The company also provides professional management services, including administration; arts, science and educational programming; ticketing; event management; marketing; and more to other arts and nonprofit organizations. For information, please visit WashingtonPavilion.org.