After almost four decades, Prince's rock musical drama film, "Purple Rain," is finally being developed into a stage musical set for Broadway and will feature the icon's most famous hits including the namesake of the project, "When Doves Cry," "Take Me With U," and others.
Prince's 'Purple Rain' the Musical
Theatrical producer Orin Wolf, who recently contributed to the Tony-winning stage adaptation of "The Band's Visit, " announced the development of the upcoming Broadway-bound Prince project last Monday, Jan. 8.
The would-be musical production will follow a book written by Branden Jacobs-Jenks, a playwright who was a 2016 recipient of the MacArthur Foundation "genius" grant and was responsible for the critically-acclaimed family drama play "Appropriate."
For the direction, Tony-nominated Lileana Blain-Cruz is tasked to "steer" the adaptation to success as she had done with the famed 2022 iteration of Thornton Wilder's melancholic comedy "The Skin of Our Teeth," which enjoyed a short run on Broadway last 2022.
"It's been almost 40 years since Prince's legendary film, 'Purple Rain,' took the world by storm and we can't think of a more fitting tribute than to honor Prince and the 'Purple Rain' legacy with this stage adaptation of the beloved story," said producers L. Londell McMillan and Larry Mestel in a joint statement.
"We are thrilled with our Broadway partners and creative team, who are bringing a theatricality to the film's original fictional story," they added. "We can't wait for a new generation to discover 'Purple Rain' and for lovers of the original film and album to experience its power once again, this time live."
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About the Original 'Purple Rain' Film
Prince's breakout acting gig in the to-be-adapted 1984 movie bagged the Oscar Award for Best Original Score. Adding to its achievement is the fact that it brought in almost $100 million at the box office against a budget of $7.2 million.
The story itself revolves around an upstart Minneapolis musician named "Kid" and his struggles with his parents, his love interest, and his fellow rock artists.
According to Variety, Universal Studios had acquired the rights to a number of the late rock icon's songs in 2018 and was reportedly developing a musical for the silver screen.
Currently, it isn't apparent as to whether this particular project, which preceded the upcoming Broadway adaptation, is still on the way.
In terms of the stage musical, Wolf has not announced any other details, including final production dates and possible theater venues.
