The music and feelings from the album and film “Purple Rain” are Broadway-bound.
The announcement was made this week with the production team identified. No opening date has been scheduled for the world premiere of this stage adaptation. The film received an Oscar for Best Original Song Score, plus multiple Grammy awards.
A joint statement about the production came from L. Londell McMillan, chairman of The NorthStar Group, and Larry Mestel, founder and CEO of Primary Wave Music, part of the team spearheading this new version. The duo expressed their enthusiasm and appreciation for the production partners that have been assembled to take on delivering “Purple Rain” to long-time fans of Prince.
“It’s been almost 40 years since Prince’s legendary film ‘Purple Rain’ took the world by storm,” McMillan and Mestel said. “We can’t think of a more fitting tribute than to honor Prince. We are thrilled with our Broadway partners and creative team, bringing a theatricality to the film’s original fictional story.”
Based on the original screenplay by Albert Magnoli and William Blinn, this stage adaptation will feature a book by two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist Branden Jacobs-Jenkins with music and lyrics by Prince. The director will be Lileana Blain-Cruz, who was nominated for a directing Tony Award for the Lincoln Center’s production of “The Skin of Our Teeth.” Additional production details and timing for “Purple Rain” will be announced in the coming months.
Prince Rogers Nelson died in 2016. He sold more than 150 million records.
Prince is widely regarded as one of the greatest musicians of all time. As a singer, songwriter, musician, and music producer, he received countless awards, nominations, and accolades for his music and performances.
Prince was a multi-instrumentalist, who frequently played all or most of the instruments on his recordings. Prince incorporated his compositions into a wide variety of styles, including funk, rhythm and blues, rock, new wave, soul, blues, jazz, and hip-hop. Producing his own albums as well as those by others, he has been credited with pioneering the Minneapolis sound.
