Kristin Chenoweth to star in DEATH BECOMES HER Musical Adaption- Page 2

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 12/13/17 at 1:55pm

I’ll believe it when the curtain actually goes up. This is what, the 13th “new musical” that Chenoweth is attached to in the past 2 years, none of which have actually happened?

[RippedMan]

Posted: 12/13/17 at 2:03pm

I'd like to see the guy who wrote Heathers/Blonde tackle a more "grown up" story. I love his music. This could be fun for him!

[LimelightMike]

Posted: 12/13/17 at 2:08pm

Norbert for Ernest! PLEASE, MAKE THIS HAPPEN!

[SweetLips]

Posted: 12/13/17 at 2:12pm

Besides the lead every 'support' has many magical moments[film wise] so all should have great moments to shine.

Special effects--the creatives will have their work cut out for them especially watching Kristin become a contortionist.

It needs the total campery of Mel Brooks.

Updated On: 12/13/17 at 02:12 PM

[a-mad]

Posted: 12/13/17 at 2:27pm

Krakowski?  Yes, please!

Could you imagine the potential staging of "Sweet Bird of Youth..."?  Priceless.  This has a ton of potential... hope it gets off the ground.

[Alex Kulak2]

Posted: 12/13/17 at 3:34pm

Joe Iconis wrote a song about Helen Sharp for his Haloween show. I wonder if the producers heard it

[broadwayboy223]

Posted: 12/13/17 at 4:03pm

Is her Tammy Faye project really dead? They've been working on it for forever. And I believe Megan Hilty was invovled at one point too.

[Ado Annie D'Ysquith]

Posted: 12/13/17 at 4:43pm

This feels so random. I never even considered DEATH BECOMES HER to be a "cult classic." People I talk to, they say it's just a lukewarm movie.

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 12/13/17 at 4:49pm

Ado Annie D'Ysquith said: "This feels so random. I never even considered DEATH BECOMES HER to be a "cult classic." People I talk to, they say it's just a lukewarm movie."

It's like the definition of a cult classic.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 12/13/17 at 6:40pm

And like everyone just mentioned, this **** ain’t happening. Universal just jumped the gun and announced it and she most likely said she’d be on board and they’re running with that statement.

The list of non-produced musicals officially announced and starring Kristin Chenoweth is enormous.

[Auggie27]

Posted: 12/13/17 at 7:10pm

Baffled and intrigued by all of this excitement. The movie has a 52 on Rotten Tomatoes. It didn't work, and was ultimately dependent on CGI and FX.  We're not even talking "9 to 5" and "Groundhog Day," two beloved films that couldn't make a go of it, one with a swell score and both with great performances.  But okay, if it's generating this much anticipation....

[GeorgeandDot]

Posted: 12/13/17 at 7:25pm

9 to 5 and Groundhog Day were both poor musical adaptions of great films. Death Becomes Her is a deeply flawed, but fun film, which tends to be the kind of material that lends itself well to being musicalized. It gives the creative team a chance to fix what didn't work originally.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 12/13/17 at 7:38pm

Except Groundhog Day was an ingenious adaptation.

So...yeah.

[BroadwayNYC2]

Posted: 12/13/17 at 7:47pm

Groundhog Day was brilliant. Don't confuse failing to catch on commercially with the quality of the show itself. 

[GeorgeandDot]

Posted: 12/13/17 at 7:53pm

I disagree. I thought it was a perfectly serviceable adaption, which is a problem when the film is brilliant. Sunset Blvd suffers in the same way to me. When the film is perfect, there's no way to improve upon it for a musical adaption. The musical will always pail in comparison. Death Becomes Her isn't a perfect film and allows plenty of room for improvement.

[JustAnotherNewYorker]

Posted: 12/13/17 at 8:06pm

Just think of all the jokes we'll be able to tell when this project seems to die, but continues living on...

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 12/13/17 at 8:58pm

Auggie27 said: "Baffled and intrigued by all of this excitement. The movie has a 52 on Rotten Tomatoes. It didn't work, and was ultimatelydependent on CGI and FX. We're not even talking "9 to 5" and "Groundhog Day," two beloved films that couldn't make a go of it, one with a swell score and both with great performances. But okay, if it's generating this much anticipation...."

Both of those shows flopped. What’s your point? A musical based on a movie won’t be successful or flop because of how the movie it’s based on did at the box office.

[gypsy101]

Posted: 12/14/17 at 8:29am

exactly . Waitress barely even existed at the box office and yet it’s a big hit! same with Kinky Boots. Once was a semi-known indie film most notable for beating Alan Menken’s thrice-nominated Enchanted for Best song at the Oscars. usually it’s the smaller films that work successfully as musicals.

as for this musical...i agree with the “believe it when it happens” crowd. Kristin Chenoweth really does seem to have an inordinate amount of productions announced that never materialize (i for one would love to see her as Dolly Parton or Dolly Levi), hell even On the Twentieth Century was talked about for like 4 years before it came to fruition. i haven’t kept too close an eye on her career as of late simply because she doesn’t seem to be doing much tv work (which kept her busy for about a decade recently) and clearly film stardom isn’t in the cards for her. i would like it if she stuck to recording albums and touring and appearing in musicals, and the prospect of her in her first new musical since Wicked is exciting. I would just like for it to happen.

also Jane Krakowski costarring would be wonderful.

[newintown]

Posted: 12/14/17 at 8:38am

Not that there's much point in discussing a show that isn't even being written yet, but - 

Waitress, Kinky Boots, and Once were small, independent films (and two were foreign). Death was a major big budget Hollywood project that didn't do very well because the story, although an interesting idea (yet far from original), has serious structural problems, leading the last 1/3 or 1/2 to slowly fizzle rather than expand and explode. They contrast more than they compare.

Does this mean a musical version would flop? Not necessarily. Personally, I don't see where it would sing in the last 1/2, without being significantly rewritten, and we all know how rarely a film to stage adaptation varies significantly from its source these days.

[gypsy101]

Posted: 12/14/17 at 8:46am

oh i definitely agree about the quality of the film. it’s a fun movie that i’ve seen maybe twice and probably don’t need to ever see again. i just think it’s worth noting (mainly commercial) reception of source material vs reception of adaptation frequently varies greatly. but you’re probably correct that these points are moot since the show doesn’t even exist on paper yet.

[South Fl Marc]

Posted: 12/14/17 at 10:02pm

Interesting - I love dark comedies but I hated the movie ... I mean seriously hated it ...  but to each their own

[hork]

Posted: 12/14/17 at 11:33pm

South Fl Marc said: "Interesting - I love dark comedies but I hated the movie ... I mean seriously hated it ... but to each their own"

Same. I saw it when it was in theaters and haven't really thought about it since. I remember thinking it was Zemeckis's first big misstep.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 12/15/17 at 12:39am

I don't think any adaption is a sure bet. I mean, for all purposes, Legally Blonde is a BRILLIANT musical, but it was a flop on Broadway. And it was a major success as a movie as well. I think the Broadway, nowadays, does better with the lesser known movies. People want new stories, I think. Especially if they're spending the money. We have so many great shows that have been hits that are not well known stories, and I think that's great. I remember seeing The Wedding Singer when I was in high school  and the people in front of me talking about how predictable it was, etc. I think audiences want more now. Especially for their $$.

[John Adams]

Posted: 12/15/17 at 9:44am

TotallyEffed asked: "Both of those shows flopped. What’s your point? "

I'm feeling like Auggie's stronger point was: "It didn't work, and was ultimately dependent on CGI and FX." I agree with him on that point.

The story itself was/is completely forgettable. The only aspects of the movie that were memorable were slapstick visuals like Merryl Streep walking backwards with her head twisted 180 degrees, or Goldie Hawn with a huge gaping hole in her abdomen. How would that be accomplished on Broadway? And without those kinds of visual effects, what's left? Something pretty bland.

The article here on BWW inadvertently proves that there's no substance to the thought that this is actually going to happen. I mean, the headline reads, "Breaking: Kristin Chenoweth Will Star in Musical Adaptation of DEATH BECOMES HER", but then the first sentence of the article let's us all know the headline was just deliberately misleading hype: "Kristin Chenoweth might be heading back to Broadway!" (I suppose the exclamation point should create excitement...?)

In response to Kad''s question, "...but who's writing and directing it?" I believe the answer is (at least, at this point) "no one".

Updated On: 12/15/17 at 09:44 AM

[TheSassySam]

Posted: 12/15/17 at 10:01am

If people are concerned about some of the special effects, drag queen Alaska did a Death Becomes Her illusion for Halloween this year. It could be a quick change into a bodysuit. if you are concerned about a neckline showing for where the "breastplate" will show, just use a tighter necklace to cover it up.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BaaJXV-A424/?hl=en&taken-by=sharonneedlespgh

As for the hole through the body effect, just get two iPad minis facetiming each other (one on front, one on back) and it'll create an illusion of a hole. 

Surely costume designers have more ingenious ways of creating these effects, but these are some solutions I have seen that create neat effects. 

This will be a campfest I can't wait to indulge on.