Talk about a novel idea! A musical adaptation of Bernice Rubens' Madame Sousatzka has its eyes on the Great White Way. Sousatzka will star Tony winner Victoria Clark and boast a book by Craig Lucas and a score by Richard Maltby Jr. and David Shire. The tuner, backed by notorious producer Garth Drabinsky, will premiere in Toronto in February next year and is currently scheduled for an October 2017 Broadway bow.
Along with Clark, the cast features Tony nominee Montego Glover (the two recently workshopped the show), Tony winner Judy Kaye and newcomer Jordan Barrow. Choreographed by Graciela Daniele and directed by Adrian Noble, Sousatzka will begin performances on February 25, 2017 at Toronto’s historic Elgin Theatre and officially open on March 23.
Sousatzka is set in London, England in 1982 and tells the story of a young musical prodigy torn between two powerful women from vastly different worlds: his mother, a political refugee and his piano teacher, a brilliant eccentric with a shattered past. These two proud, iconoclastic women must ultimately cross cultural and racial divides to find common ground, or else put the boy’s destiny in jeopardy.
A 1988 screen adaptation of Rubens' novel, penned by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala and helmed by John Schlesinger, starred Shirley MacLaine, who won a Golden Globe for her performance.
The production will feature scenic designer by Anthony Ward, costume design by Paul Tazwell, lighting design by Howell Binkley, projection design by Jonathan Driscoll, sound design by Martin Levan, orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick, music supervision by David Caddick, music direction by Brad Haak, additional music and vocal arrangements by Lebo M. and additional music arrangements by Marius de Vries.
More information, including a Broadway venue and dates, will be announced later.