"A truly must-see show. Epic and beautifully written."

CHRIS JONES, NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

"A true gift."

AYANNA PRESCOD, VARIETY

Emmy Award winner Debra Messing (Will & Grace) comes home to Broadway in the poignant and funny new hit play about the extraordinary moments that make up one woman’s ordinary life.

Messing leads a remarkable cast as Ernestine Ashworth, who spends her 17th birthday agonizing over her insignificance in the universe. Soon enough, it’s her 18th birthday. Even sooner, her 41st. Her 70th. Her 101st. Five generations, an infinity of dreams, and one cake baked over a century.

This “true gift” of a play (Variety) will take you through the highlights and heartbreaks of 90 years in 90 minutes. As the Daily News says, “Messing is extraordinarily moving. It’s truly a must-see show.”

Running time: 1 hour and 30 minutes, no intermission.

Ernestine: Debra Messing
Kenneth: Enrico Colantoni
Matt/William: John Earl Jelks
Joan/Alex/Beth: Crystal Finn
Alice/Madeline/Ernie: Susannah Flood
Billy/John: Christopher Livingston
u/s Ernestine: Kate Hampton
u/s Billy/John: Brandon J. Pierce
u/s Matt/William: Thomas Silcott
u/s Kenneth: Stephen Barker Turner
u/s Joan/Alex/Beth, Alice/Madeline/Ernie: Arielle Yoder
u/s Joan/Alex/Beth, Alice/Madeline/Ernie: Allison Altman

Playwright: Noah Haidle
Director: Vivienne Benesch
Set Design: Christine Jones
Costume Design: Toni-Leslie James
Light Design: Jen Schriever
Sound Design: John Gromada
Hair & Wig Design: Matthew B. Armentrout
Makeup Design: Kirk Cambridge-Del Pesche
Original Music: Kate Hopgood

An older man puts his arms on the shoulders of a woman wearing a yellow dress and an apron. They smile at each other while standing in a kitchen. — (l to r): Enrico Colantoni (Kenneth), Debra Messing (Ernestine Ashworth) in Roundabout Theatre Company's BIRTHDAY CANDLES.
Joan Marcus

A Black man holds a blanket with a baby in it while a woman in an apron stands next to him, smiling at the baby. — (l to r): John Earl Jelks (Matt/William), Debra Messing (Ernestine Ashworth) in Roundabout Theatre Company's BIRTHDAY CANDLES.
Joan Marcus

A woman with auburn hair wears a yellow dress and sits at a table with a fishbowl, in it a swimming goldfish. — Debra Messing (Ernestine Ashworth) in Roundabout Theatre Company's BIRTHDAY CANDLES.
Joan Marcus

Lit in a warm light, a woman in a robe holds a baby. Behind her in cold light, a distraught woman looks watches over the shoulder of the man she's hugging. — (l to r): Susannah Flood (Alice/Madeline/Ernie), Debra Messing (Ernestine Ashworth) in Roundabout Theatre Company's BIRTHDAY CANDLES.
Joan Marcus

A group of smiling actors sit and stand around a kitchen-themed set on stage. — The company of Roundabout Theatre Company's BIRTHDAY CANDLES.
Joan Marcus

A young smiling Black man in a letterman jacket and wearing glasses sits in a kitchen with two white women on either side of him. One of them rests a hand on his shoulder. — (l to r): Debra Messing (Ernestine Ashworth), Christopher Livingston (Billy/John), Susannah Flood (Alice/Madeline/Ernie) in Roundabout Theatre Company's BIRTHDAY CANDLES.
Joan Marcus

A woman wearing pajamas and a robe sits at a kitchen table and holds the hand of another woman standing next to her, who wears a yellow dress and blue apron. — (l to r): Susannah Flood (Alice/Madeline/Ernie), Debra Messing (Ernestine Ashworth) in Roundabout Theatre Company's BIRTHDAY CANDLES.
Joan Marcus

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Check out exclusive interviews and features

Discover the artists and history behind Birthday Candles in the Upstage Playgoer’s Guide.

READ THE UPSTAGE GUIDE

Learn more about the history of the production and its creators through a lively discussion with Roundabout Teaching Artists.

VIRTUAL THEATRE TALK

A white woman with blonde hair and bangs leans on the kitchen counter and fiddles with a can full of baking utensils. — Crystal Finn
Jeremy Daniel

A white woman with auburn hair and glasses stands among a kitchen rehearsal set. She wears a collared green jumpsuit. Another woman stand behind her at an island counter. — Debra Messing, Susannah Flood
Jeremy Daniel

A Black man wearing glasses laughs while sitting at a wooden table in a rehearsal set that looks like a kitchen. — Christopher Livingston
Jeremy Daniel

A woman with auburn hair and glasses smiles in the rehearsal studio, set to look like a kitchen. Her hair is in a ponytail and she wears a blue apron tied at her waist. — Debra Messing
Jeremy Daniel

A group of actors and the playwright stand and lean around a kitchen island set while the director speaks to them. — Noah Haidle (Playwright), Enrico Colantoni, John Earl Jelks, Debra Messing, Vivienne Benesch (Director)
Jeremy Daniel

A man in a backwards baseball cap speaks to a woman wearing an apron as they stand in a rehearsal kitchen set. — Enrico Colantoni, Debra Messing
Jeremy Daniel

An over the shoulder shot of someone speaking to two actors standing behind a kitchen island on the rehearsal set. — John Earl Jelks, Debra Messing
Jeremy Daniel

Alec Baldwin
James Costa and John Archibald
Linda L. D’Onofrio
Peggy and Mark Ellis
Jeanne Hagerty
Sylvia Golden
Angelina Lippert
K. Myers
Laura Pels International Foundation for Theater
Ira Pittelman
Mary Solomon
Lauren and Danny Stein
Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust
The Tow Foundation

Major support for Birthday Candles generously provided by The Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation.

Birthday Candles was originally commissioned and produced by Detroit Public Theatre (Detroit, MI; Producing Artistic Directors: Courtney Burkett, Sarah Clare Corporandy and Sarah Winkler).

Birthday Candles was developed as part of Chautauqua Theater Company’s New Play Workshop series, 2017, underwritten by the Roe Green Foundation.