Galileo is a biographical rock opera about the life and times of astronomer and scientist Galileo Galilei and his defense of his findings against the Catholic Church, known as the Galileo affair.
The show premiered at Berkeley Repertory Theatre in 2024, and is set to transfer to Broadway at the Shubert Theatre in December 2026.
Plot When scientist Galileo Galilei makes discoveries about the universe, he must defend his work against the church.
Production history In June 2019, Raúl Esparza led a single-performance workshop reading at the Susan Stein Shiva Theatre at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York. Galileo made its world premiere at Berkeley Rep in May 2024. It has a book by Danny Strong, music and lyrics by Michael Weiner and Zoe Sarnak, and is directed by Michael Mayer with choreography by David Neumann. The production won six 2025 San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Awards, including Best Production, from 16 nominations.
Variety's review was headlined, "Grafting ’80s-Style Power Ballads onto the Story of a Renaissance Visionary Yields Assertive but Awkward Results."https://variety.com/2024/legit/reviews/galileo-musical-review-berkeley-rep-1236007154/
Galileo is set to begin previews at Broadway's Shubert Theatre on November 10, 2026, with a December 6 opening night.
Characters and cast CharacterBerkeley RepBroadway20242026Galileo GalileiRaúl EsparzaBishop Maffeo BarberiniJeremy KushnierVirginia GalileiMadalynn MathewsJoy WoodsCardinal MorosiniJavier MuñozBishop GrassoBradley DeanAlessandro TarantolaChristian MagbyJordon Lee GarciaGiordano BrunoAdam HalpinGalileo AlternateBradley DeanMichael Park
Awards and nominations 2024 Berkeley Rep production YearAwardCategoryWorkResultRef.2025Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle AwardsBest ProductionBest Principal PerformanceRaúl EsparzaMadalynn MathewsBest Featured PerformanceJeremy KushnierBradley DeanBest Stage DirectionMichael MayerBest Music DirectionRoberto SinhaBest Original MusicMichael Weiner and Zoe SarnakBest Original ScriptDanny StrongBest ChoreographyDavid NeumannBest Specialties DesignTom WatsonBest Projection DesignJason H. Thompson and Kaitlyn Pietras Best Sound DesignJohn ShiversBest Set DesignRachel HauckBest Lighting DesignKevin AdamsBest Costume DesignAnita Yavich
References
External links Official website