Review: Dead Outlaw

On paper, this musical shouldn’t work: it’s about a man who only became famous after death, and the lead spends nearly half the show playing a motionless corpse - during a rock concert, no less.

Yet, somehow, it not only works, but creates one of the most thrilling new musicals of this season.

With a rock/country score by David Yazbek and Erik Della Penna and a book by Itamar Moses, Dead Outlaw transferred to the Longacre Theatre after a critically acclaimed and award winning Off-Broadway run at the Minetta Lane Theatre in 2024. It follows the life of Elmer McCurdy, an outlaw who was killed in a shootout with the police in 1911,who only achieved fame posthumously when his corpse toured the nation for decades. Dead Outlaw is one of the most unusual musicals on Broadway, not just because of its unorthodox source material, but because it places the band at the center of the narrative. When you walk into the auditorium before the show begins, the only thing you see is the band’s wagon, a structure resembling a cabin where the band resides for the duration of the show. Designed by Arnulfo Maldonado, it is present for the entirety of the show and, thanks to its mobile structure, moves across the stage, becoming

Company of Dead Outlaw

other pieces that tell the story. Heather Gilbert’s lighting design was another standout. Despite the show’s overall darkness, she expertly highlights just what we needed to see, setting a dark mood for a show centered around death. Trusses of moving fixtures were another aspect of her design, descending at certain points when the music fell into the rock genre and transforming the space into a rock concert. Also employing handheld microphones, this was a brilliant tactic that Yazbek and Della Penna masterfully used to hammer home the most emotional moments of the show. 

While the production’s visual and musical elements are stellar, it’s the cast who truly breathes life into the show. All of the actors reprise their roles from the Off-Broadway run, bringing a level of nuance and emotion that complements the stunning design work. It takes remarkable range to portray an alcoholic murderer and then stand motionless as a corpse for nearly an hour, but Andrew Durand’s performance as Elmer McCurdy, the title character, is so convincing, you may find yourself wondering if he actually stops breathing. Sensational, alive and dead, he shines in this role both vocally and physically. Jeb Brown, as the Bandleader, takes on the dual role of narrator and performer, guiding the audience through McCurdy’s strange life using the band and music as the central narrative device. His rugged, country voice fits the score perfectly, and he effortlessly switches between characters. But it’s in moments of stillness that Brown truly shines, drawing the audience in with solemn reflections on McCurdy’s brief, chaotic life. Additionally, Julia Knitel brings heart to the show, beginning as Maggie, McCurdy’s girlfriend, who laments his death and how he was “a stranger” to her with heartbreaking honesty. Later, she becomes Millicent, the daughter of the film director who ends up with McCurdy’s body, delivering a mix of dark comedy and poignant grief in a song about the corpse becoming her only friend. The rest of the ensemble cast changes in and out of characters flawlessly, whether as spectators, various coroners, business owners, or reporters. 

The band of Dead Outlaw

The score, which blends rock and country, is more than just musical style—it’s a reflection of McCurdy’s tumultuous life. Songs like 'Dead,' sung by Brown, and 'Something from Nothing,' performed by Eddie Cooper and Trent Saunders, explore the show’s themes of fame, legacy, and the way society turns tragedy into spectacle. On the other side of the table, Thom Sesma plays Dr. Thomas Noguchi, the famed 'coroner to the stars' who famously investigated high-profile Hollywood deaths in the 1960s-1980s. His show-stopping, jazzy number 'Up to the Stars' is the most stylistically unique piece in the show, humorously reflecting on the bizarre way America has glorified both McCurdy’s corpse and the causes of death of famous figures. Sesma instantly charms the audience with this comedic and grotesque song, and I, for one, am here for just that, because the places where comedy meets “what the hell” is where the show excels. 

Directed beautifully by David Cromer, this is a masterpiece. The morbid jokes all land, the emotions are hammered into your eardrums (literally), and aside from one incredibly long scene about Andy Payne’s cross country run on Rt. 66 where the corpse comes out of the spotlight, the plot is very streamlined and easy to follow - a good thing when telling such a ludicrous story. 

Despite its bizarre premise, this is a must-see show for its unique blend of rock, dark comedy, and existential themes. I thoroughly enjoyed this show in all of its absurdity, which allowed me to push away the burning question of “what called for this to be a musical now?” But that is a question that does not need to be answered, because for ninety minutes, this show made me think a little bit about myself. Why are we alive? How do we want to be remembered? How do we want to live on after death? These questions lingered with me long after, and despite its title, that is what Dead Outlaw is about. 

4/5 stars

1 hour and 40 minutes, no intermission

Longacre Theatre

Through June 29, 2025