Camelot is returning to Broadway for one brief, shining moment — get your first look

Are you ready for the lusty month of May?

Broadway is bringing it to you a little early this year with the highly anticipated revival of the Lerner and Loewe musical Camelot, opening April 13 at Lincoln Center's Vivian Beaumont Theatre.

EW has your first look at the revival, now in previews, featuring a glimpse of King Arthur (Andrew Burnap) and Sir Lancelot (Jordan Donica) engaged in a sword fight. For something a little more romantic, there's also our first look at Hamilton star Phillipa Soo as Guenevere, Arthur's wife, celebrating a ritual in the woods.

Joan Marcus Jordan Donica, Phillipa Soo, and Andrew Burnap in 'Camelot'

"I'm so excited for audiences to see and hear Aaron Sorkin's book," Soo said in an exclusive statement to EW. "It has lifted this age-old story to meet us where we are today. Camelot is a story of truth, justice, inspiration, and hope. Bringing this story to life every day, the massive responsibility I feel is outweighed only by the joy and pride I feel to be a part of such a piece."

The show, which boasts a revised book by Aaron Sorkin, is another Lincoln Center Theater Broadway production from Bartlett Sher, who has previously helmed Tony-winning revivals of South Pacific, The King and I, and My Fair Lady there. "Camelot is one of the most beloved pieces in the American musical theater canon," Sher said in a statement. "It's important to come back to it now in 2023 and see how the piece is different, how we're different and what the idea of Camelot means to us now."

Camelot reunites Sher and Sorkin, who previously collaborated on the most recent Broadway adaptation of To Kill a Mockingbird.

Based on T.H. White's The Once and Future King, itself an adaptation of Arthurian legend, Camelot follows King Arthur as he demands his advisor and wizard, Merlin, take him back to the beginning of his story. From there, we see Arthur's betrothal to Guenevere, his wooing her with the tale of his drawing the sword from the stone, and his formation of the Knights of the Round Table. Eventually, the happy court of Camelot is torn apart by Guenevere and Lancelot's forbidden love and the machinations of Mordred and Morgan le Fey.

Joan Marcus Phillipa Soo and the company in 'Camelot'

Jordan Donica, veteran of Hamilton and The Phantom of the Opera, picks up Lancelot's sword in this production. "Being a part of this revised Camelot is a full circle moment for me," he told EW. "I feel my Aunty K with me every step of the way and the ideals of Camelot were ideals that she herself strived for and lived by till the very end. We should all be so brave."

Rounding out the core trio at the heart of the action is Andrew Burnap as Arthur. "I'm excited for audiences to grapple with the questions of Camelot in a newly urgent way," Burnap said in a statement. Can we harness power as a force of good; using our influence to create a more just and equitable society? Or will we always be bound by the most base desires of human nature, destined to come up short of our ideals for the rest of time? These themes — along with the gorgeous, timeless score — will, I hope, make for a beautiful and meaningful experience."

Check out the photos above for more. Camelot is currently in previews.

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