‘True Blood’ Broadway Musical in the Works
A Broadway musical based on the hit HBO vampire series True Blood is in development, The New York Post reports.
The theatrical adaptation is being workshopped under director Pam MacKinnon, who won a Tony Award in 2013 for directing the revival of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Author Elizabeth Scott — best known for her 2008 young adult novel, Living Dead Girl — is writing the book and lyrics, while Nathan Barr, who scored True Blood the TV show, is handling the music. The Post also reported that True Blood creator Alan Ball is overseeing the project, though Ball has not confirmed a role in the musical.
The workshop cast featured a handful of Broadway regulars including Ellen Foley (also known for her turn on Night Court), Ann Harada (Avenue Q) and Claybourne Elder (Broadway’s Bonnie & Clyde).
Word of the workshop comes two years after Barr announced his plans to adapt True Blood into a musical, having pitched the idea to HBO and Ball along with musical samples partly crafted with star Stephen Moyer. At the time, Barr said he wanted the musical version to “return to the roots of the show.”
Like the TV series, which wrapped its seven-season run in 2014, the True Blood musical would be set in the fictional town of Bon Temps, Louisiana where vampires — and other supernatural creatures — live among humans. The HBO series, especially in its earlier seasons, was often lauded for its over-the-top, campy melodrama — a style that would translate well to the stage.
While Broadway frequently mines film for new productions, a True Blood musical would mark a rare theatrical adaptation of a television show. A SpongeBob SquarePants musical is finishing its first run in Chicago and is scheduled to arrive on Broadway for the 2016 – 2017 season. Based on the beloved Nickelodeon cartoon, the production features music from Steven Tyler and Joe Perry, the Flaming Lips, John Legend, David Bowie, Cyndi Lauper and more.