‘Slam Frank’ Hip-Hop Musical Retelling Of Anne Frank Story Extends Off Broadway Run

EXCLUSIVE: Slam Frank, the much talked-about Off Broadway musical that re-imagines the Anne Frank story as a multi-ethnic and genderqueer hip-hop musical, is extending its run into 2027 due to popular demand.

Initially set to close at the end of November, the musical by Andrew Fox and Joel Sinensky will now play through January 4, 2027, at the the Orpheum Theatre in Manhattan’s East Village. Previews began on September 17 before the official opening on October 4.

Although the musical divided critics, it’s certainly one of the most buzzed-about Off Broadway productions of the season. The musical was inspired by a 2022 viral Twitter thread that asked, “Did Anne Frank ever acknowledge her white privilege?” Fox and Sinensky co-wrote the show drawing on actual statements from the online discourse.

Here’s the official synopsis: “Slam Frank imagines what happens when a progressive theater company asks themselves that same question, transforming Anne Frank’s tragic true story into an intersectional, multi-ethnic, genderqueer, decolonized, anti-capitalist, hyper-empowering Afro-Latin hip-hop musical.” The description goes on to call the work “a satirical reckoning about identity, tribalism, and art that left audiences reeling.”

Directed by Sam LaFrage, choreographed by Esosa Oviasu, with music direction by Alex Harrington, Slam Frank stars Olivia Bernábe as Anita (the Anne character), Alex Lewis as Peter, Amelia Louise Barr as Margot, John Anker Bow as Mr. Van Daan, Austen Horne as Edith, Rocky Paterra as Otto, Jaz Zepatos as Mrs. Van Daan, and Walker Stovall as The Assistant Stage Manager.

The producing team includes GFour Productions, Stage Time, Steven Brandon, Andrew Fox, Alex Lewis, and Joel Sinensky, in addition to Sarah Battaglia, Erin Boeke Burke, and Katie Rosin.