'Jagged Little Pill' closes on Broadway due to the pandemic

The show had previously canceled performances from December 18-21.

Jagged Little Pill has announced a permanent Broadway closure due to challenges caused by the pandemic, becoming the first Broadway show to do so. The musical, which had previously announced a four-day cancellation of performances due to the presence of positive Covid-19 cases in the company, played its final performance on December 17.

"We are dismayed by what appears to be another substantial public health crisis, and - due to the detection of multiple positive Covid-19 cases within the company - need to prioritize the health and safety of the cast, crew, and entire team working on Jagged Little Pill," a statement from the producers reads in part. "In light of the extreme uncertainty ahead of us this winter, and forced to choose between continuing performances and protecting our company, we've made the difficult decision to close our doors."

The producers also said they "will be announcing plans for subsequent productions, building on the show's triumphant launch in Australia earlier this month" and that they "hope and intend to find a way to bring this vibrant and vitalizing musical back to the Broadway stage, once the current crisis is past."

Jagged Little Pill sets the songs from Alanis Morissette's five-time Grammy-winning 1995 album of the same name (and additional music co-written by Glen Ballard) to an original book by Diablo Cody. The members of the suburban Healy family grapple with addiction, illness, sexuality, and more beneath an outward facade of perfection. The show began Broadway performances in November of 2019 and opened the next month at the Broadhurst Theatre, with Diane Paulus directing.

The five-star New York Theatre Guide review called the musical "a visceral woven tapestry of the kids we made, trauma induced memory, rape, racism, sexual identity questions, opioid addiction, Connecticut Soul Cycle bitches, and extreme pressure to get that Ivy League acceptance letter. The artistry of Morissette is magnified by Cody - that raw honest desire Generation X has been afraid to feel since the '90's."

At the 2020 Tony Awards ceremony, held in September 2021, Cody won for Best Book of a Musical and Lauren Patten, who plays Jo, won for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. Patten was with the cast at the time of closing, alongside Tony Award nominee Elizabeth Stanley and Grammy Award nominee Heidi Blickenstaff alternating as Mary Jane Healy, Morgan Dudley as Frankie Healy, Derek Klena as Nick Healy, Sean Allan Krill as Steve Healy, and Kathryn Gallagher as Bella. Stanley, Klena, Krill, and Gallagher all received Tony nominations for their roles.

"We are so proud of this extraordinary show, and this extraordinary company, who every night in difficult circumstances, have told the Jagged Little Pill story. This show about healing, human connection, and catharsis, has been a salve to audiences, and to all of us, throughout these trying times," the producers' statement read.