According to the Hollywood Reporter, Andrew Lloyd Webber has been in Los Angeles working on his next major project, an all-new stage version of Cinderella with a contemporary twist.
He said ; "I'm working with young writers whose combined ages add up to less than mine,It's delightful to have such young collaborators and I'm completely captivated by what they've done with the story. Now that I've said I'm going to do it, I have to get to my piano" Those collaborators are LA based British writers Tom MacRae (screenwriter, author and playwright who wrote the book and lyrics for the hit musical Everybody's Talking About Jamie,) David Zippel and writer Emerald Fennel.
Lloyd Webber said of the creative team's non-traditional approach to the material."They have remade Cinderella into a completely modern, feisty girl," said "Every piece of the story is followed, but it will be turned around so it's not at all what you expect it to be. It just turns the whole thing around on itself." The classic fairy tale gets a makeover
that includes a feisty, fiery version of the titular princess who falls
in love with an awkward oddball named Sebastian, and a gay love story
involving Prince Charming and a duke. He explained"It takes it away from the world of magic and fairy
godmothers, but it's not going to be anywhere nearly as modern as, say,
Los Angeles in 2023,I can't really say more about it at this point."
The musical had an industry preview at The Other Palace in London
this week with some of Broadway's most notable producers and theatre attending the presentation.
Lloyd Webber says the writing process is moving swiftly as the three collaborators work together to storyboard the musical and figure out where songs will go. The composer will be fitting in work on the project around the start of shooting on the film version of his blockbuster musical Cats in November, and expects to have a Cinderella score completed by the end of the year.
While no timeline has yet been set, he expects the show, which will be produced by his Really Useful Group, to follow the usual development period for a musical of 18 months-two years minimum. He added that while it's at too early a stage to go into greater detail, the setting will be neither a traditional fairy tale kingdom nor a recognizable contemporary location.
