The new musical 'Mystic Pizza,' adapted from the 1988 romantic comedy starring Julia Roberts, will begin a nationwide tour in January 2025.
The production will open at Vero Beach, Florida's Riverside Theatre, with confirmed stops including Tampa, St. Paul, and West Palm Beach. As previously announced, the musical will run for four weeks at New Jersey's Paper Mill Playhouse.
This version of the musical debuted earlier this year at California's La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts, with a book by Sandy Rustin (Clue, The Cottage) and a jukebox score of classics from the 1980s and 1990s.
Melissa Etheridge wrote the original music for a world premiere run at Ogunquit Playhouse in 2021. In 2022, a separate staging with a different creative team performed at Engeman Theater.
Casey Hushion, who directed the world premiere in 2021 and the staging at La Mirada, will direct the upcoming tour.
Her creative team from the La Mirada run will reunite for the traveling production, including choreographer Connor Gallagher, music director Kristin Stowell, arranger and orchestrator Mel Dean, scenic designer Nate Bertone, lighting designer Ryan J. O'Gara, and costume designer Jennifer Caprio.
The cast and additional tour dates will be announced soon.
The musical focuses on three young women from the working class. The women navigates the complicated expectations of life, love, and family while working at a small-town pizzeria that serves everyone from the privileged country club set to townies.
Furthermore, the jukebox score includes 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun,' 'Addicted to Love,' 'Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now,' and 'Take My Breath Away.'
McCoy Rigby Entertainment, Lively McCabe Entertainment, and Riverside Theatricals will produce the tour, with Michael Barra and Tom McCoy as the executive producers. Concord Theatricals has made special preparations for the presentation of the play.
