“Sister Act,” by Joan Marcus
Another movie adaptation, “Sister Act,” stars the young and rising star Ratina Miller, Tony nominated for her role as Deloris Van Cartier, a disco singer placed in protective custody in a dying convent after witnessing a murder.
Reprising the movie role of Whoopi Goldberg, one of the show’s producers, Miller energetically breathes new life into the convent’s choir, with hilarious and toe-tapping results.
Another of Goldberg’s movie roles could be headed to Broadway eventually. “Ghost the Musical,” based on the 1990 film that starred Goldberg, Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore, started previews at London’s Piccadilly Theatre in late June.
The long-planned revival of “Godspell,” the first since it debuted on Broadway more than 30 years ago, starts previews Oct. 13 at the Circle in the Square Theatre, with an opening set for Nov. 7.
“Godspell” is a contemporary telling of the parables and Christ’s story found in the Gospel of St. Matthew and includes the hit song “Day by Day.”
Kathleen Marshall, who won a Tony for her choreography of “Anything Goes,” is working on reviving another classic American composer’s work for Broadway next season. “Nice Work If You Can Get It” is based on the 1920s George Gershwin musical “Oh, Kay!” about love among Prohibition bootleggers.
A musical adaptation of the novel and movie “Big Fish,” directed and choreographed by five-time Tony winner Susan Stroman, is set to open on Broadway in the spring. Music and lyrics are by Andrew Lippa, who wrote the same for “The Addams Family.”
Three strong, varied and interesting female characters could be headed to Broadway next year.
Dorothy, Toto and the gang currently are playing in London in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s newest stage production, “The Wizard of Oz,” inspired by the 1930s MGM film. Danielle Hope won the role of Dorothy through a contest, but Miller said “she is quite good. There are a couple of new songs [by Tim Rice] they have added to what were in the movie.”
Michael Crawford, who originated the title role in “The Phantom of the Opera,” plays the wizard.
Webber also is backing a revival of his musical “Evita,” the story of Argentina’s Eva Peron, which is set for Broadway next spring. Argentine actress Elena Roger, who won acclaim in the lead role in London, is slated to reprise the role on Broadway. Pop singer Ricky Martin will play Ché.
“Funny Girl,” the story of early-20th-century comedienne Fanny Brice, will be revived for a limited engagement in Los Angeles early next year, with Broadway a possibility in the future.
Although “Glee” television star Lea Michele was touted for the role created on Broadway in the 1960s by Barbra Streisand, her “Glee” schedule would not permit it. Instead, the producers have launched an online search for an actress to play Brice.
Plays reportedly candidates for Broadway revival next year include Tennessee Williams’ “A Streetcar Named Desire” with Blair Underwood making his Broadway debut as Stanley Kowalski, William Inge’s “Picnic” and “Front Page.”
Although a number of hit Broadway musicals and plays have originated off-Broadway, a recent trend has hit Broadway shows going in the other direction and moving off-Broadway to extend their New York runs.
The designation of Broadway and off-Broadway is determined by theater size, with off-Broadway theaters seating between 99 and 499.
The latest to make the move is “Million Dollar Quartet,” the Tony-nominated musical about the legendary 1956 jam session at Sun Studios in Memphis, Tennessee, that united Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins.
The musical ended its Broadway run at the Nederlander Theatre June 12 after 489 regular performances and 34 previews, and reopens in July at New World Stages, where the revival of “Rent” will also begin this summer.
