It's been announced that Josh Groban will make his Broadway debut in none other than Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812, which plans to return to New York in September 2016. Directed by Rachel Chavkin, the production is an interpretation of a section of Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace.
Groban is an outspoken fan of the theater and, more notably, is a successful crooner who recently released the album Stages, which he plans to support with his On Stage Tour this summer. The singer will play Pierre, a role originated by the show's creator Dave Malloy.
The show premiered to positive reception in 2012 and also received subsequent stagings in 2013 and 2014. An unique idea, certainly, the musical is based off a small section of War and Peace.
The musical, while merely a 70-page restaging from Tolstoy's heavy novel, follows a young girl named Natasha, who forms a relationship with a revolutionary named Anatole despite her engagement to beau Andrey, who is off fighting a war. Groban will premiere as Andrey's best friend, Pierre, who is on high alert with Natasha in the absence of his friend.
Groban remarked on the production to The New York Times:
"For a first time doing it, I wanted it to be something that was a little less expected, and I wanted it to be a show and a character that forced me to get a little bit out of my comfort zone and do something that people haven't seen before To have the opportunity and freedom to take off the hat of 'me,' and to dive into a character, is something I think will be very freeing, and very fun."
A most exciting engagement, the stage is certainly a place for the famed opera singer.
Also recently, Mr. Groban was a guest on The Late Late Show With James Corden in December. He sang what has been dubbed the "Public Domain Song Concert Palooza" with Corden, a segment in which the pair sang public domain tunes such as "Ba Ba Black Sheep" and "Frère Jacques."
2016 will be a big year for Groban, what with a North American tour in his midst and now with a Broadway debut set for later this year.
In the meantime, check out Groban and Clarkson singing together below.
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