This new musical reunites composer and lyricist Tim, with director Matthew Warchus, choreographer Peter Darling and designer Rob Howell, four of the Matilda The Musical creative team. They joined forces with writer Danny Rubin to collaborate on this show based on his 1993 hit film.
Updated October 2019
SKIP TO: Groundhog Day | Princess Theatre, Melbourne, 2024| Old Vic, London, 2023 | Old Vic, London, 2016 | Broadway, New York | Today | Quotes/Reviews | Awards | Videos | Press | Sheet Music | Songbook
Groundhog Day
Phil Connors, a cynical Pittsburgh TV weatherman is sent to cover the annual Groundhog Day event in the small town of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Caught in a time loop, he’s forced to relive the same day again and again… and again. As Phil becomes increasingly despondent, is there a lesson being learned and will he ever figure out the secret to break the cycle?
Old Vic, London, 2016
Photo courtesy of the Old Vic
Groundhog Day had its world premiere and enjoyed a critically acclaimed strictly limited 10 week season at The Old Vic Theatre, London, in the summer of 2016.
One of the most ambitious shows ever to have been staged at The Old Vic, previews began on the 15th July.
The official Opening Night on August 16th brought in a blizzard of rave 5 Star reviews.
The show closed with emotional celebrations and farewells on the 17th September 2016, Broadway bound for spring 2017.
Andy Karl (Phil Connors)
Photo © Manuel Harlan
Andy Karl played Phil Connors, with Carlyss Peer as Rita Hanson, his kindly producer, alongside an ensemble cast which included: Leo Andrew, David Birch, Ste Clough, Roger Dipper, Georgina Hagen, Kieran Jae, Julie Jupp, Andrew Langtree, Vicki Lee Taylor, Emma Lindars, Antonio Magro, Carolyn Maitland, Kirsty Malpass, Lisa Mathieson, Eugene McCoy, Jenny O’Leary, Leanne Pinder, Mark Pollard, Damien Poole, Jack Shalloo, Andrew Spillett and Spencer Stafford.
The award nominations and wins rolled in, including two Olivier Awards for Best New Musical and Best Actor in a Musical for Andy Karl. Groundhog Day at the Old Vic also won the Critics’ Circle Award for Best Musical and four BroadwayWorld UK/West End Awards including Theatrical Event of the Year.
There’s more information on this production, including details of the full creative team, on the Old Vic website, or you can keep up to date with the latest news on the show by following the show’s UK social media accounts on Facebook.com/GhDMusical, Twitter @GhDMusical and Instagram @GhDMusical.
Broadway, New York
Now on Broadway, Groundhog Day followed an exciting month of previews, from 16th March, with a triumphant Opening Night on the 17th April, 2017, at the August Wilson Theatre.
Again, a blizzard of rave reviews rolled in.
Andy Karl is reprising his much lauded London performance as Phil Connors, with Barrett Doss playing Rita Hanson. Joining them are the ensemble: Rebecca Faulkenberry, John Sanders, Andrew Call, Raymond J. Lee, Heather Ayers, Kevin Bernard, Gerard Canonico, Rheaume Crenshaw, Michael Fatica, Katy Geraghty, Camden Gonzales, Jordan Grubb, Taylor Iman Jones, Tari Kelly, Josh Lamon, Joseph Medeiros, Sean Montgomery, William Parry, Jenna Rubaii, Vishal Vaidya, Travis Waldschmidt and Natalie Wisdom.
Groundhog Day on Broadway has received nominations for SEVEN Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Original Score and Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical for Andy Karl; FIVE Outer Critics Circle Award nominations; TWO Drama League Award nominations and a Drama Desk Award nomination. There’s a full list of nominations and wins in the Awards section.
You can keep up to date with the latest news on the show by following the show’s US social media accounts on Facebook.com/GroundhogDayMusical, Twitter @Groundhogdaybwy and Instagram @groundhogdaybwy.
Groundhog Day played its final Broadway performance on September 17th, 2017. The production had played 32 previews and 176 regular performances upon closing.
Songbook and Digital sheet Music
There’s now a Songbook for piano and vocals available through Hal Leonard. Tim wrote an essay for the book “reflecting on the musical and existential themes in the score.” You can read Tim’s foreword here.
The digital sheet music for the individual songs can be found here.
Old Vic, London, 2023
Groundhog Day is making its long clamoured for return to London’s Old Vic theatre in summer 2023.
The show will run from May 20th to August 19th 2023, with a press night on June 8th. There will be an audio described performance on July 7th and a captioned show on July 20th.
Directed by Matthew Warchus, artistic director of the Old Vic, with the book by Danny Rubin, and music and lyrics by Tim.
Tim: “Creating this musical was hugely challenging and enormously fun. Working with the wondrous Danny Rubin and the brilliant Matthew Warchus, alongside Chris Nightingale – music supervisor and orchestrator extraordinaire – we wrestled this iconic existential comedy drama into a completely new work; something that not only found critical acclaim, but also seemed to affect its audiences in a way I’ve not witnessed. It was dense with laughs, crowded with big ideas, wildly ambitious and profoundly emotional. Seeing it come back to The Old Vic, perhaps my favourite theatre on the planet, is a huge thrill.”
Matthew Warchus: “Groundhog Day is one of my all-time favourite films and making the musical stage adaptation with Danny Rubin and Tim Minchin was one of the happiest creative experiences of my life. With echoes of classics such as The Music Man and It’s A Wonderful Life, the Groundhog Day film manages to be both a great screwball comedy-romance and also a profound life-lesson combined… adding up to, in my view, the perfect entertainment. Our musical adaptation aims to build on those dual attributes and unlock – in comic, theatrical form – a potent and uplifting message for us all: ‘The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new lands but in having new eyes’ (Marcel Proust).”
You can keep up to date with the latest news on the show by following The Old Vic‘s social media accounts on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter and the hashtags #OVGroundhogDay and #GroundhogDayTheMusical.
Today
Princess Theatre, Melbourne, 2024
Direct from its record-breaking return season at London’s Old Vic, Groundhog Day The Musical played exclusively at Melbourne’s Princess Theatre, for a strictly limited season from January 24th, 2024.
Andy Karl reprised his role as Phil Connors, the cynical TV weatherman…again. He played Phil in the original London production, for which he won the Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical, reprising his role in the Broadway production where he was Tony Nominated for Best Actor in a Musical, and he played Phil again in London for Groundhog Day’s record-breaking return season at the Old Vic in 2023.
Opposite Andy Karl, playing the quick-witted and kind-hearted television producer Rita Hanson, was Helpmann award-winning performer Elise McCann who played Miss Honey in Matilda in the Australian production. Full cast details here.
Tim: “I cannot wait to get down to Melbourne to meet our Groundhog Day The Musical cast. I’m especially excited by the news that Andy Karl will be joining the rest of the Australian cast, who are a brilliant bunch of people. Andy played Phil Connors in the original London production, for which he won an Olivier Award and then on Broadway for which he was Tony Nominated. Ever since the first iteration of Groundhog Day The Musical I’ve been convinced that Australia will love the mix of darkness and light, of head and heart, and complexity and joy in the production.”
Follow @groundhogdayau on Instagram, Facebook and Tiktok for updates.
Following a triumphant run, the show closed April 24th 2024.
Tomorrow…
Where next?
MTI are now licensing productions of Groundhog Day around the world with the exception of the UK and Australia. The producers continue to pursue opportunities in those territories.
Quotes/Reviews
London – The Old Vic:
The Telegraph *****
“Groundhog Day: the Musical is an instant classic – and could be better than the movie”
The Times *****
“so much fun that it should be illegal.”
“manages to couple laugh-out-loud British humour with American razzmatazz.”
The Stage *****
“An absolute triumph”
“…tone is finely established in composer Tim Minchin’s evocative and exhilarating score… It is at once supremely melodic, magical, haunting and hilarious.”
The Independent *****
“Such a tonic that it’s a pity you can’t get a repeat prescription for it.”
WhatsOnStage *****
“[Andy Karl’s] is an outstanding performance at the centre of a magnificent work that sends everyone out into the night cheering – and just a little wiser.”
The Guardian ****
“fantastically smart, clever and witty”
Evening Standard *****
“…relentlessly amusing, Groundhog Day is a treat.”
New York, Broadway – August Wilson:
The New York Times (Critic’s Pick)
Ben Brantley hails that “A Star Is Born (and Born and Born)… Repetition is an art of infinite variety as it’s practiced by Andy Karl in ‘Groundhog Day’, the dizzyingly witty new musical from the creators of ‘Matilda’.”
“Mr. Karl is so outrageously inventive in ringing changes on the same old, same old, that you can’t wait for another (almost identical) day to dawn… Thanks to his character’s successive reincarnations, Mr. Karl is giving not one but many of the best performances of the season.”
“The insanely talented Mr. Minchin writes songs in many shades… undulating melodies and whip-smart lyrics tap into the brooding sides of the supporting characters, extending the reach of existential anxiety beyond Phil’s solipsism.”
David Rooney declares that “‘Groundhog Day’ is a delirious reinvention with its own defiantly unique personality, a relentless forward-backward spin that leaves you smiling, exhilarated and giddy.”
“Karl gives a musical-comedy performance of the highest caliber, sliding from self-centered insouciance into surprising open-heartedness, displaying a seemingly inexhaustible range of physical expressiveness along the way.”
“Madly entertaining… Worth repeating.”
New York Post
Johnny Oleksinski calls it “A miracle on Broadway… [Karl’s] performance — a suave, comic wonder… [in] songwriter Tim Minchin’s deliriously zany, yet touching show.”
Chris Jones says “The cross-platform migration of the movie serves to remind us of the brilliance of the screenplay (and now the fabulous book to a musical) by a one-time Chicagoan named Danny Rubin, a masterful piece of writing.”
“Tim Minchin[’s] composing talents are the perfect match for this material… and his songs in this show are a series of deliciously funny, quirky and waggish little ditties that make you laugh out loud.”
Chris Nashawaty proclaims the show “Wonderfully inventive… a giddy highlight of the current Broadway season… it takes Karl all of five minutes to win you over completely.”
“Groundhog Day: The Musical soars.”
David Gordon says “[‘Groundhog Day’] provides a visual feast, is musically fascinating, and features a truly epic performance from leading man Andy Karl,”
“‘Groundhog Day’ is one of the more imaginative musicals of the season. When the material is combined with Warchus’ cinematic staging … it is also one of the most consistently thrilling… It’s exactly what you want a Broadway musical to be: a high-concept spectacle but one that has a compelling story, hummable music, and smart-as-hell lyrics. Reliving Groundhog Day over and over would prove to be a real pleasure.”
Robert Kahn declares “The creators of ‘Matilda’ have worked their magic all over again. And again… It’s marvelously good fun…and Karl is a magnetic leading man.”
Mark Shenton says Groundhog Day is “As hilarious as it is bracing.”
“Matthew Warchus’ production has only grown in vividness and confidence since its premiere at the Old Vic last summer… [Karl’s] performance is one of comic bravado and stunning vocals.”
“Warchus and his expert collaborators have brought a finely-tuned balance of Broadway-scale polish and an English-infused ironic pathos to the show that makes its constant repetitions worth revisiting.”
“Tim Minchin’s musical remains a contemplative and captivating delight in its new Broadway home.” *****
Awards
Winner
UK:
2017 Olivier Awards – Best New Musical
2017 Olivier Awards – Best Actor in a Musical for Andy Karl
2017 Critics’ Circle Award: The Peter Hepple Award for Best Musical
2016 BroadwayWorld UK/West End Awards – Theatrical Event of the Year
2016 BroadwayWorld UK/West End Awards – Best Direction for Matthew Warchus
2016 BroadwayWorld UK/West End Awards – Best Set Design for Rob Howell
2016 BroadwayWorld UK/West End Awards – Best Lighting Design for Hugh Vanstone
US:
2017 Outer Critics Circle Awards – Outstanding Actor in a Musical for Andy Karl
2017 Theatre World Awards – Outstanding Broadway Debut Performance for Barrett Doss
2017 Drama Desk Awards – Outstanding Actor in a Musical for Andy Karl
Nominated
UK:
2017 Olivier Awards – Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical for Andrew Langtree
2017 Olivier Awards – Best Theatre Choreographer for Peter Darling and Ellen Kane
2017 Olivier Awards – Best Lighting Design for Hugh Vanstone
2017 Olivier Awards – Best Costume Design for Rob Howell
2017 Olivier Awards – Best Set Design for Rob Howell
2017 Olivier Awards – Best Director for Matthew Warchus
2017 Whatsonstage Awards – Best New Musical
2017 Whatsonstage Awards – Best Actor in a Musical for andy Karl
2017 Whatsonstage Awards – Best Direction for Matthew Warchus
2017 Whatsonstage Awards – Best Choreography for Peter Darling and Ellen Kane
2017 Whatsonstage Awards – Best Set Design for Rob Howell
2017 Whatsonstage Awards – Best Lighting Design for Hugh Vanstone
2017 Whatsonstage Awards – Best Video Design for Andrzej Goulding
2016 Evening Standard Theatre Awards – The Radio 2 Audience Award for Best Musical
US:
2017 Tony Awards – Best Musical
2017 Tony Awards – Best Book of a Musical for Danny Rubin
2017 Tony Awards – Best Original Score (Music and Lyrics) Written for the Theatre for Tim Minchin
2017 Tony Awards – Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical for Andy Karl
2017 Tony Awards – Best Direction of a Musical for Matthew Warchus
2017 Tony Awards – Best Choreography for Peter Darling and Ellen Kane
2017 Tony Awards – Best Scenic Design of a Musical for Rob Howell
2017 Drama League Awards – Outstanding Production of a Musical
2017 Drama League Awards – Distinguished Performance for Andy Karl
2017 Outer Critics Circle Awards – Outstanding New Broadway Musical
2017 Outer Critics Circle Awards – Outstanding Book of A Musical for Danny Rubin
2017 Outer Critics Circle Awards – Outstanding New Score for Tim Minchin
2017 Outer Critics Circle Awards – Outstanding Director of A Musical for Matthew Warchus
Videos
Tim talking about Groundhog Day in January 2017:
Director Matthew Warchus, lead actor Andy Karl, and librettist Danny Rubin discuss Groundhog Day:
Tim sings ‘Seeing You’ at the South Bank Sky Arts Awards, backed by some of the cast and musicians from the Old Vic production:
(To skip the intro start at 0:36).
Tim’s acceptance speech for Groundhog Day The Musical’s Best New Musical win at the 2017 Olivier Awards:
Tim performed ‘Hope’ at the 2017 Olivier Awards. He was backed by some of the cast of the Old Vic production and the BBC Concert Orchestra:
Initial Broadway online trailer:
Groundhog Day: “So Much Fun It Should Be Illegal!” (First US TV commercial)
Clips from Groundhog Day on Broadway:
[Spoiler Alert!]
Opening Night on Broadway 17th March, 2017:
Intercut with behind the scenes footage at the recording studios for the Groundhog Day Original Broadway Cast Album, Tim & Chris Nightingale (Orchestrations) offer insights into the writing and creative process, while Andy Karl and Barrett Doss talk about performing the Groundhog Day songs and what they mean to them personally:
Press
US:
“I Refuse to Try and Reverse Engineer A Hit”: Tim Minchin on His Score for Groundhog Day Playbill (Interview)
Why ‘Groundhog Day’ Needed to Be a Musical Rolling Stone (Editorial/Interview)
