The Real Legend of Sleepy Hollow
at TD Bank Arts Center

This weekend, just when you’ll think all the Halloween shenanigans are over for the year, playwright Matthew Norcross will raise the curtain on his The Real Legend of Sleepy Hollow: The Musical at TD Bank Arts Center. This interpretation of the classic takes a look at the backstory of Icahbod Crane, played by Asbury Park actor Brett Colby.

The story opens with a dramatic (and, thanks to the large venue, massive) battle that ends with Crane beheading a captain, who — you guessed it — ends up as the Headless Horseman (Louis Hall). From then on, Crane is haunted by this terrifying figure.

The show’s not all gloom and doom, though. There’s a little romance mixed in, too, in the story of Crane’s relationship with Katrina Van Tassel (Melanie Brigg), who he secretly pursues for her fortune. It is this variety, he believes, that will separate the play and its characters from previous incarnations. “I don’t like to compare myself to other actors, though I will say people should not expect this to be a musical version of the Johnny Depp movie. This Crane is rather tortured, true to the original story, but with some new elements that flesh out the character.”

So do those elements contain a gay twist? Not exactly, says Colby, but he hints that it wouldn’t be completely unheard of to believe that Crane and his devoted male companion are gay.

The Real Legend of Sleepy Hollow plays Nov. 1 and 2 at the TD Bank Arts Center. For more information and ticket links, go here.