“Girl, Interrupted” Comes to the Stage in First-Look Photos of Play Adaptation Starring King Princess (Exclusive)

Girl, Interrupted is making the jump from the page to the stage in a new adaptation features music by Grammy winner Aimee Mann and a book by Pulitzer winner Martyna Majok

NEED TO KNOW

• Juliana Canfield, King Princess, and Emily Skinner lead the cast in the production directed by Jo Bonney

• The play is now in previews at The Public Theater in New York City and runs through July 12

Over three decades afterGirl, Interruptedcemented itself as a defining coming-of-age drama for a generation, the story is heading to the stage — and PEOPLE has a first look.

Susanna Kaysen’s bestselling 1993 memoir has been adapted into a new play with songs by Grammy winner Aimee Mann and a book by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Martyna Majok.

Directed by Jo Bonney, the production is now in previews at The Public Theater in New York City ahead of an official opening night on June 4. But fans don't have to wait until then to get a peek at what's to come.

Photographer Joan Marcus captured the cast in production photos that PEOPLE can exclusively debut.

The images offer a glimpse inside the production’s haunting world, capturing everything from intimate therapy sessions and charged confrontations to fleeting moments of friendship between the hospital’s young patients.

Girl, Interruptedchronicled Kaysen’s 18-month stay at McLean Hospital after she was admitted to a psychiatric facility in the late 1960s following a brief psychiatric evaluation.

The memoir became a cultural phenomenon after James Mangold’s 1999 film adaptation, which starredWinona RyderalongsideAngelina Jolie,Whoopi Goldberg,Brittany Murphy,Elisabeth Moss,Clea DuVall,Jared LetoandVanessa Redgrave.

Jolie won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance.

According to the official synopsis, the stage show will mirror what fans came to love about the story, following Susanna after she admits herself to a psychiatric hospital following “a 15-minute session with a doctor she’d never met,” where she forms “unexpected bonds with the young women inside as they search for connection and a way forward.”

“Raw and unapologetic, this new play with music reveals that the people who witness our darkest moments are often those who truly see us,” the synopsis continues.

Tony Award nominee Juliana Canfield (Stereophonic) — who TV audiences may also recognize fromSuccession— leadsGirl, Interruptedas Susanna, the sharp but emotionally adrift aspiring writer made famous onscreen by Ryder.

Singer-songwriter King Princess stars as Lisa, the charismatic, unpredictable sociopath originally played by Jolie in the film. The role marks the “1950” singer’s theatrical debut.

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Stage veteran and fellow Tony nominee Emily Skinner takes on the role of Dr. Wick, the compassionate psychiatrist Redgrave starred as.

Katherine Reis embodies Daisy, the fragile and deeply troubled patient memorably played by Murphy, while Sally Shaw steps into the role of Polly, the soft-spoken burn survivor portrayed by Moss. Ta’Rea Campbell rounds out the group as Valerie, the firm but caring head nurse originated in the movie by Goldberg.

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The cast also includes Gabi Campo as Tori, Mia Pak as Grace, fellow patients Susanna meets during her time inside the institution. The characters appeared in Kaysen’s memoir but were not named in the film.

Lauren Jeanne Thomas (Judy/Musician) and Manoel Felciano (Man/Musician) completes the principals. Leela Bassuk, Eileen Doan, Gunnar Manchester, Anna Roman and Rachel Stern make up the production's understudies,

Girl, Interruptedis playing through Sunday, July 12. The play features choreography by Tony winner Sonya Tayeh.

The production has been years in the making, but came to a halt during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mann previously released several songs originally written for the project on her 2021 albumQueens of the Summer Hotel. The folk rock icon's music remains in the production, though she is no longer actively involved in it.

In a recent feature withThe New York Times, Majok described the production as “somebody who is a 38-year-old woman looking back to when she was 18 and in a place of deep questioning and illness, deep stuckness that might have followed her since then.”

Canfield also explained how Mann’s songs help shape that perspective throughout the show. “Sometimes they feel almost Brechtian or hypertheatrical,” the actress told the outlet, “a way for Susanna’s memory to create a caricature, especially out of the adults, the more bombastic figures from her past. Sometimes they feel extremely introspective.”

As for Kaysen herself, the author said she’s open to seeing the story evolve for a new generation. “It’s scaffolding, it’s a starting point,” she said of her memoir. “And if people want to reinterpret it in some other way, that’s good, let them. I wrote the book I wanted to write.”

Tickets toGirl, Interruptedare now on sale.

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