‘The Front Page,’ ‘Heisenberg’ & Other Broadway Shows Featuring Big Celebrity Names This Fall

Nothing gets people excited for a Broadway play like the presence of a big-name headliner. Every season top stars lend their talents and recognition to new productions, and the chance to see your favorite actors live on stage is a nice incentive for audiences to check out some nonmusical plays that might've otherwise gone overlooked. Here are four exciting new productions opening this fall, each boasting impressive star power. Grab your tickets fast -- these shows are all set for limited runs.

The Front Page

Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur's 1928 hit The Front Page, one of Broadway's most enduring comedies, will return with a new production at the Broadhurst Theatre this Fall. Directed by three-time Tony Award winner Jack O'Brien, the show boasts easily the most starry cast of the season, headlined by two-time Tony-winning theater favorite Nathan Lane, Mad Men star John Slattery and John Goodman. Set in the press room of the Chicago Criminal Courts Building, the play follows star reporter Hildy (Slattery) who discovers an escaped death row convict and enlists the help of his managing editor Walter (Lane) to help him hide the escapee from the police -- and the other reporters -- so they can uncover the story of their careers. The play is memorable for its sharp fast-paced dialogue and has been adapted into numerous films, the best-known being the classic rom-con His Girl Friday (in that version Hildy is a woman and Walter's ex-wife). If the headliners aren't big enough for you, the show boasts a huge cast of recognizable character actors, including Broadway veteran and Slattery's Mad Men co-star Robert Morse, Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder star Jefferson Mays, Christopher McDonald, Dylan Baker, Holland Taylor and Sherie Rene Scott. The show begins performances Sept. 20 at the Broadhurst Theatre and runs through Feb. 5.

Heisenberg

Sadly not a musical adaptation of Breaking Bad, Heisenberg is nonetheless a hotly anticipated transfer coming off a successful twice-extended run Off-Broadway run last year. The show is produced by the Manhattan Theatre Company and will run as part of its 2016-2017 season. An original play by Tony-winning playwright Simon Stephens (The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time), Heisenberg stars Tony- and Emmy-winner Mary Louise-Parker as a woman who spontaneously kisses an older man (Denis Arndt) at a crowded London train station, and the play deals with their peculiar relationship that develops. The show begins performances Sept. 20 and officially opens Oct. 13 at the Friedman Theatre.

Les Liaisons Dangereuses

A revival of Christopher Hampton's adaptation of Les Liaisons Dangereuses will begin performances Oct. 8 at the Booth Theatre, officially opening Oct. 30 and closing Jan. 22. Based on the classic 1782 novel that captured the debauchery of the French aristocracy, the play stars Oscar-nominee Janet McTeer and Emmy-nominee Liev Schreiber as ex-lovers who challenge each other in games of seduction and scheme to corrupt a virtuous, married aristocrat. You might know it from its 1988 film version Dangerous Liaisons -- or possibly its teen movie update, Cruel Intentions. The cast also includes Tony nominee Mary Beth Peil, Birgitte Hjort Sorensen (Pitch Perfect 2, Vinyl) and My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2's Elena Kampouris.

The Present

The Present is one of the most buzzed-about shows of the season because it finally marks the Broadway debut of one of Hollywood's most acclaimed talents, two-time Oscar-winner Cate Blanchett. The show is also headlined by Richard Roxburgh. An adaptation of Anton Chekov's Platonov written by Andrew Upton (Blanchett's husband), and updating the setting to the 1990s, the play deals with a widow (Blanchett) celebrating her birthday in her country house with guests including acerbic schoolmaster Platonov (Roxburgh), where past tensions and unresolved relationships come to surface. The production originated at the Sydney Theatre Company. It will open at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre Jan. 8, with previews beginning on Dec. 17, and run through March 29.