Floyd Collins – A Great American Musical

Jun 18, 2025 by Two Sues On the Aisle

By Two Sues on the Aisle, Susie Rosenbluth and Sue Weston

Lincoln Center Theater’s revival of the musical Floyd Collins, nominated for six Tony awards, transports us back 100 years, to a small rural Kentucky town, where a tragedy that will capture the attention of the newspapers is unfolding.  The show is based on the true story of William Floyd Collins (1887-1925), a cave explorer who became trapped and died after an unsuccessful rescue attempt. This story was ripped from the headlines, romanticized by playwright Tina Landau, with music and lyrics by Adam Guettel.

Floyd Collins is a hauntingly heartbreaking tale.

Inspired by a True Story

Kentucky farmers searched for hidden Sand Caves beneath their property, hoping for tourism as a way to generate money. They needed the money to pay down the debt they had taken on to meet increased demand during World War I, but quickly declined after the war.

Floyd Collins dreamed he would discover a great cave, to bring in the money they needed and make his father proud. He discovered a cave, which drew tourists to the area. But things did not play out as he hoped.

In 1925, Floyd Collins, age 37, was trapped for two weeks, 55 feet underground in a Kentucky cave. His rescue became National news, one of the first stories shared via the telegraph and reported using broadcast radio. It created a media spectacle, attracting tourists in a carnival setting.

One reporter, William Burke Miller, from Louisville, called “Skeets” because he was “not much bigger than a mosquito,” made several trips into Sand Cave to interview Floyd, removing some rocks that were trapping him. He received the 1926 Pulitzer Prize for his on-site coverage.

H.T. Carmichael, a Superintendent of the Kentucky Rock Asphalt Company, led the rescue operations. He prevented local farmers who were familiar with caves from interfering with his plan to dig a shaft to reach Collins. They feared his plan would cause a cave-in and ultimately proved unsuccessful.

Amazing Performances by All

Jeremy Jordan (nominated for a Tony for the Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical for his portrayal of Floyd Collins) was amazing, his powerful voice filling the theater with hope as he answers “The Call” to find the hidden cave, and with dread as he becomes a prisoner. Pinned beneath the rocks, trapped between a ‘rock and a hard place,’ he lies a solitary figure on stage, with limited contact with the outside world, fighting for his sanity and his life. Visited by the illusion of his sister Nellie (played brilliantly in our performance by understudy Kristen Hahn), his brother Homer (Jason Gotay), and reporter Skeets Miller (Taylor Trensch).

The stark stage created an illusion of being in a cavernous space. We were enthralled by the use of lights, backlighting actors frozen in place, creating scenery, while the lack of illumination gave a sense of isolation inside the cave.

The set design was clever, with ramps appearing from around the stage from nowhere for Floyd to scale and slide down, creating a virtual obstacle course, giving us a sense of what it felt like to crawl through the caves.

Continuum of Life

This touching story reminds us just how much technology has advanced over the past 100 years. Many themes are timeless, such as the volatility of family dynamics and the allure of fame.

Floyd was an adventurer to the core, a devoted son looking for his father’s approval. But his father was a hard man (Marc Kusisch), waiting in vigil outside the cave, praying for closure, and questioning why his children were broken. He is portrayed as cold and distant, focusing on the present rather than discussing Homer’s decision to leave the farm once Floyd is rescued. He is dismissive, faulting his children for wanting more from life than working the land.

The show reshapes the nostalgia often associated with a simpler life in the 1900s. The farmers sit around, their clothing covered in dirt, living near poverty, hoping for a miracle. Their talents are summarily dismissed as the educated engineer takes over the rescue operation, turning to the locals for help, but it is too late to save Floyd.

This poignant story is a reminder of the realities of life, which throw obstacles in our path that can be scaled by youthful exuberance, but does not always come with a happy ending.

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Two Sues on the Aisle bases its ratings on how many challahs (1-5) it pays to buy (rather than make) to see the play, show, film, book, or exhibit being reviewed.

Lincoln Center’s revival of the musical Floyd Collins received 5 Challah

Running Time: 2 hours and 35 minutes, including one intermission

Floyd Collins will be ending its limited engagement at Lincoln Center Theater on June 22.

Coming Next to  the Vivian Beaumont Theater “RAGTIME”