Alan Cumming and Shirley Henderson to Star in Off-Broadway Musical 'A History of Paper'

Alan Cumming and Shirley Henderson will headline the Off-Broadway production of A History of Paper, a two-person musical developed in Scotland. Performances are set to begin Feb. 12, 2027, at the Shubert Organization's Stage 42, with the 13-week engagement scheduled to run through May 16.

The musical traces a love story through the paper remnants of a relationship. Letters, menus, train tickets, shopping lists and postcards all serve as artifacts that carry the narrative of the couple at the center of the show.

A History of Paper began life as a BBC Radio 4 play in 2017, written by Oliver Emanuel. Emanuel then adapted it for the stage with composer Gareth Williams, presenting it as a work in progress at Scotland's Dundee Rep Theatre in 2019.

The production went on to make its Edinburgh Festival Fringe debut at The Traverse Theatre in 2024, where it earned the Fringe First Award. Cumming saw the show there and programmed it in his first season as artistic director of Pitlochry Festival Theatre in Scotland, its most recent stop before the New York transfer.

Andrew Panton, artistic director of Dundee Rep Theatre, will direct the Off-Broadway staging. Producers are Sonia Friedman Productions, Jerry Goehring and Pemberley Productions.

For Cumming, the New York run is part of a larger ambition to build what he described as a theatrical exchange with Scotland. "I am so thrilled to bring A History of Paper from my home country of Scotland to my adopted home in New York City," he said, adding that the show "utterly belongs in New York City." He noted that launching an exchange between Manhattan and the theater in the hills has been his plan since taking over at Pitlochry, and that this is the first production to make the trip. He also said he was delighted to share the stage with Henderson, whom he first worked with more than forty years ago.

Cumming won a Tony Award in 1998 for his performance as the Emcee in the Broadway revival of Cabaret, a role he revisited in 2014. His New York stage credits also include Broadway productions of Design for Living, The Threepenny Opera and his solo Macbeth, as well as the Off-Broadway production of Jeremy O. Harris' Daddy. Beyond the theater, he is an Emmy Award winner for hosting The Traitors and has an extensive list of film credits.

Henderson, widely recognized as Moaning Myrtle in the Harry Potter films and Jude in the Bridget Jones films, will make her New York stage debut with this production. She originated the role of Elizabeth in Girl from the North Country at The Old Vic, winning the Olivier Award for best actress in a musical, and has appeared on stage in the National Theatre's The Winter's Tale.