Frontmezzjunkies reports: A new musical rooted in history and defiance begins its Broadway run
By Ross
The image that stays with me is simple. Two sisters standing side by side, not yet legends, not yet outlaws, just two people about to decide whether they will live inside the life they were given or step outside of it. That moment, that split second before everything changes, feels like the heart of WANTED, now making its way onto a Broadway stage.
Set in Texas in 1893, the musical tells the story of Mary and Martha Clarke, two women who refuse to accept the limits placed in front of them. What begins as survival slowly transforms into something larger, as they take control of their own narrative and, in doing so, step into a space that history rarely allows women to occupy. They are sisters first, but the world around them demands something else. It demands action, risk, and the willingness to be seen in a way that cannot be undone.
Written by Angelica Chéri, a descendant of the Clarke sisters herself, with music by Ross Baum, WANTED carries a sense of personal connection that runs beneath the surface of the storytelling. This is not simply a retelling of events, but an attempt to reclaim a history that feels both distant and immediate. That connection gives the material a particular weight, one that suggests the story is being told not just for an audience, but for the legacy it represents.
Onstage, Solea Pfeiffer and Liisi LaFontaine hopefully will step into these roles with the kind of presence that suggests both strength and vulnerability. Their journey moves from quiet determination to something far more visible, shaped by the choices they make and the consequences that follow. The dynamic between them is essential, not just as partners in action, but as sisters navigating a world that tests the limits of trust, loyalty, and identity.
Directed by Stevie Walker-Webb (Public’s Ain’t No Mo’), the production arrives with the promise of a story that leans into both its theatricality and its emotional grounding. There is a sense that the music and movement will carry much of that weight, shaping how the audience experiences the shifting tone of the narrative. The idea of transformation sits at the center of it all, not just in what the characters do, but in how they are seen, both by each other and by the world around them.
What makes WANTED particularly compelling at this moment is the way it intends to frame its story. It is not simply about rebellion, but about ownership. About deciding who gets to tell the story, and what happens when those who have been written out begin to write themselves back in. The line between history and myth begins to blur, and the question becomes less about what is true and more about what has been allowed to remain visible.
As the production rides onto Broadway at full gallop, there is a sense of anticipation that comes with watching a story like this take shape in front of an audience. The performances will shift, the rhythms will settle, and the full shape of the piece will reveal itself musically in real time.
And somewhere inside that motion is that original image. Two sisters, standing at the edge of a decision that will change everything. The story that follows may grow into legend, but it begins in that quiet moment, where choosing to step forward means there is no going back.
