Friday 5: 5 Iconic Props of the 2024-2025 Season

If I said, "rolling pin and chaste silver razor" or "a cow as white as milk, a cape as red as blood, hair as yellow as corn, a slipper as pure as gold," you'd probably know right away what Broadway show to which I am referring. These props have become synonymous with their respective productions. 

Over the years there have been many. Heck, just looking over the shows currently playing there are several. The genie's lamp is so iconic it is part of Aladdin's logo. Hadestown goes even farther - that red flower is not only on the Playbill cover, it adorns the outside of the Walter Kerr Theater! Then there's the golden quill from & Juliet, the green elixir from Wicked, Eliza's letter from Hamilton, and Ponyboy's journal from The Outsiders. At least some of those have achieved Sweeney Todd levels of notoriety, right?

Each season, I am always curious to see what will become the latest additions to the "Broadway's Iconic Props" list. Here's what I think they might be from the season just ended:

5 Iconic Props of the 2024-2025 Season

5. John Proctor is the Villain: Copies of The Crucible: Since Arthur Miller's classic figures so prominently in this play (and its title), it would seem odd not to have the scripts appear in the show. Every character in the play has a copy in their hands at least once. Very meta. 

4. Oh, Mary!: The Bucket: Ok, so it is gross, but completely necessary in this zany Tony-winning play. I won't go into details here, but if you know, you know!

3. Sunset Blvd.: The cameras: Everyone in the show had to be ready for their close-up! Given the way this revival is presented, this inclusion shouldn't be a surprise. I'll admit that before I saw it, I was prepared to be annoyed by them getting in the way. Now I can't imagine it without them. 

2. Death Becomes Her: The Potion Vail: This little purple vial is so important to this show, it not only appears in the show, and is part of the show logo, but it later shows up as a big set piece! Did the Wicked vial walk so this one could run?

1. Maybe Happy Ending: The Firefly Jar: That big jar starts out as a money holder, then transforms into a habitat for Claire's beloved fireflies. It is part of one of the most beautiful scenes of the entire season. I love that this is Claire's connection to nature, just as HwaBoon is Oliver's. Even Helperbots need life to make them feel whole.

A Special Note About HwaBoon: I'm betting many of you are thinking, "Jeff, how could you not pick the breakout prop of the year, HwaBoon?" Well, that's because he's come out as a character, NOT a prop. He even posted a pic from his dressing room with his script (left). You may have seen that he's also been getting around town, visiting Audrey II at Little Shop of Horrors, and as recently as last week, he visited the grasslands at The Lion King. I'd like to see Mrs. Lovett's rolling pin do that!