The fate of the Flea Theater’s upcoming production of The Parisian Woman is currently up in the air, according to The New York Times. Producers and agents are in negotiations about whether to bring the Beau Willimon-penned show, which will be helmed by popular film director Joel Schumacher, to a larger theater, with Broadway as a possible option.
Adapted from Henry-Francois Becque’s 1885 work La Parisienne, the play was originally scheduled to run at the Flea Theatre during the 2012-13 season. However, the Flea’s 74-seat theater may not be large enough to satisfy all parties involved in the production, which may mean that the show will end up in a larger house—even a Broadway one.
Creative Artists Agency suits are reportedly looking to move the show to a bigger theater as they consider the play to be a potential theatrical event: The play boasts a high-profile director, a potential big-name star (Ellen Barkin played the lead role in a recent Flea-held reading) and a rising playwright (Willimon’s play Farragut North was adapted into last year’s Oscar-nominated drama The Ides of March, starring Ryan Gosling and George Clooney).
Understandably so, the Flea is reluctant to give up the production, which would no doubt bring great attention to the non-profit off-off-Broadway house. Willimon, who has approval rights on the production, has a history with the Flea, which produced his play Lower Ninth in 2008.