The United States Tennis Association announced that award-winning songwriter, actor, director and life-long New Yorker Lin-Manuel Miranda has lent his highly-recognizable voice to the 2021 US Open marketing campaign. Titled “The Greatest Return,” the multi-dimensional marketing campaign captures the anticipation and excitement of the return to full capacity of America’s Grand Slam.
The campaign is set to break on national television beginning on Thursday, July 15, the same day that tickets will go on-sale to the general public. Last year, for the first time in its history, the US Open was held without spectators on-site at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. This year’s US Open takes place as Broadway and New York reopen.
“The US Open captures the spirit of New York City in a truly special way,” said Lin-Manuel Miranda. “I’m a huge fan of the Open. The energy of the crowds is unbelievable. The USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis center is incredible. I’m proud to welcome new and returning fans to this amazing two-week event.”
Click the image below to view/download the 30-second video, ‘The Return of You.’
The concept for “The Greatest Return” was developed in collaboration with the USTA’s creative agency, dentsuMB, and celebrates the return of fans and the excitement they bring to the US Open. The campaign utilizes dynamic fan and player footage from the US Open, along with a striking graphic treatment that evokes the energy of New York. The campaign is part of an extensive multi-platform effort to support ticket sales across TV, radio, print, OOH, digital and social media that will take place throughout the summer.
“Lin-Manuel is the embodiment of New York, and the US Open is the embodiment of a New York mega-event,” said Nicole Kankam, Managing Director, Pro Tennis Marketing, USTA. “Our entire organization cannot wait to welcome back the hundreds of thousands of fans to the US Open. No doubt, this will be a memorable year.”
Lin-Manuel Miranda is a Pulitzer Prize, Grammy, Emmy and Tony award-winning songwriter, actor and director. He is the creator and original star of Broadway’s Tony-winning Hamilton and In the Heights. Additional Broadway credits include Freestyle Love Supreme (2020 Special Tony Award Recipient, Co-Founder, Guest Star), Bring It On: The Musical (co-composer/co-lyricist, Tony nomination for Best Musical), and West Side Story (2009 revival, Spanish translations). Miranda is the recipient of the 2015 MacArthur Foundation Award, the 2018 Kennedy Center Honors and the 2019 Portrait of a Nation Prize. He received an Emmy Award with Tom Kitt for their song, “Bigger” from the 67th Annual Tony Awards. Miranda, and The Miranda Family, actively support initiatives that increase the representation of people of color throughout the arts and government, ensure access to women’s reproductive health, and promote resilience in Puerto Rico. TV/Film credits include: In the Heights, Hamilton, His Dark Materials, Fosse/Verdon, We The People, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Curb Your Enthusiasm (2018 Emmy Nomination, Guest Actor), Saturday Night Live (2017 Emmy Nomination, Guest Actor), Sesame Street, The Electric Company, House, DuckTales, 200 Cartas, The Odd Life of Timothy Green, Moana (2017 Oscar nomination, Grammy Award for Best Original Song) and Mary Poppins Returns. Upcoming films in 2021: Vivo, Encanto and his directorial film debut, tick, tick… BOOM!
A full roster of US Open events will be release in the near future. The tournament will be held at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center from Monday, August 30, through Sunday, September 12. Tickets can be purchased by visiting USOpen.org and TicketMaster.
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The USTA is the national governing body for the sport of tennis in the U.S. and the leader in promoting and developing the growth of tennis at every level — from local communities to the highest level of the professional game. A not-for-profit organization with more than 655,000 members, it invests 100% of its proceeds in growing the game. It owns and operates the US Open, one of the highest-attended annual sporting events in the world, and launched the US Open Series, linking nine summer WTA and ATP World Tour tournaments to the US Open. In addition, it owns approximately 90 Pro Circuit events throughout the U.S. and selects the teams for the Davis Cup, Billie Jean King Cup, Olympic and Paralympic Games. The USTA’s philanthropic entity, the USTA Foundation, provides grants and scholarships in addition to supporting tennis and education programs nationwide to benefit under-resourced youth through the National Junior Tennis & Learning (NJTL) network.For more information about the USTA, go to USTA.com or follow the official accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok.
