Carrie (1988 Barbara Cook Version)

“Carrie” is an infamous Broadway flop produced by the Royal Shakespeare in 1988, based on Stephen King’s novel. It premiered in England starring a young Linzi Hateley as the titular character, and Broadway legend Barbara Cook as her overbearing mother, Margaret. Cook hated her time in the show, and quickly announced she would be leaving before it transferred to New York (legend states she drew the line when she was almost decapitated by a flying set piece during a preview). Her role was taken on Broadway by Betty Buckley. After the show closed, the show - and Cook’s performance - became legendary among musical fans.

This window card, therefore, is an exceedingly rare item from Broadway lore. It prominently features Cook’s name, but uses the Broadway branding for the show, and lacks details of the New York theatre - which all suggests this design was produced as part of a small, early printing made before Cook’s dramatic departure, either as a ‘proof of concept' of the design, or as keepsakes for producers/investors. This window card is pristine, box fresh and was never sold to the public or used for display. Very few copies exist. The more common (though still very rare) version that occasionally comes up for sale is the final Broadway edition, featuring Betty Buckley’s name and the Virginia Theatre details.