Bridget Jones The Musical
From Theatre Breaks
A new musical version of Bridget Jones is set to open in London in 2012.
Lily Allen is meant to be writing the songs, and Stephen Daldry who directed both the film and stage hit Billy Elliot will direct Bridget Jones the Musical
There has been a workshop with Legally Blonde’s Sheridan Smith playing Bridget and Michael Xavier in the Daniel Cleaver role which Hugh Grant played in the film.
According to the Independent Sheridan Smith has confirmed that she will be playing the title role in the new Bridget Jones the Musical which is scheduled to open in London's West End next year 2012.
Working Title are the producers of the show with Lily Allen set to provide the music. The actress has already had attended a workshop with Lily Allen, Helen Fielding (the book's author) and Stephen Daldry, who directed Billy Elliot
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Bridget Jones The Musical Progress So Far..
Producer Sonia Friedman was overheard saying that Bridget Jones the Musical will open at the Savoy Theatre and it is expected the show will announce its opening there in the next few weeks. The show is facing delays due to set and book revision so although it is scheduled to open in December 2012 it might be put back until the New Year 2013.
It is believed that Lily Allen has finished the songs and a second workshop was held last month with West End stars Sheridan Smith and Michael Xavier (who is soon to tour with Wonderful Town) playing Bridget and Daniel Cleaver. The Savoy would mean a return home for Sheridan who starred in Legally Blonde there for over a year,
The timing fits perfectly with the closure of Legally Blonde the Musical on 7th April which will be followed by a revival of Neil Simon’s The Sunshine Boys, starring Danny DeVito and Richard Griffiths opening on May 17th 2011 for a limit run until July 28th 2011.
Lily Allen
Lily Allen is still writing material for the new Bridget Jones' Diary musical which she says she has almost finished. She says she still enjoys writing but the thought of touring is a nightmare and she will not make a new album.
If all goes to plan the new musical is scheduled to open next year. Sheridan Smith and Michael Xavier are currently involved in a workshop playing the Renee Zellweger and Hugh Grant parts.
Originally announced in late 2009 the musical was rumoured to open in early 2011 but both Allen and Smith have confirmed it will "hopefully" be early 2012. Author of the hit book, Helen Fielding, signed contracts in 2010 giving the production to go-ahead.
Stephen Daldry will direct with Peter Darling as choreographer. The pair previously worked together on West End and Broadway productions of Billy Elliot.
Sheridan Smith
Sheridan Smith said: "Every girl at some point feels like Bridget Jones. I'm constantly wearing Spanx, eating ice cream, and feeling a bit lonely. Bridget is great because she's more downtrodden. She falls over all the time, or makes an arse of herself and I'm totally like that."
Sheridan is hotly tipped to win the Best Actress in a Musical Olivier Award this Sunday for her performance as Elle Woods in Legally Blonde the Musical at the Savoy Theatre. She has just opened to very good reviews in Terence Rattigan's Flare Path which she is appearing in with Sienna Miller at the Haymarket Theatre.
Renée Zellweger starred in the two film versions with Hugh Grant and Colin Firth.
Sheridan Smith from Legally Blonde is currently doing Bridget Jones Workshops
Bridget Jones workshop again in the morning. Amazing but tiring. Won't be signing after the shows for a little while. Back to normal soon x
http://twitter.com/Sheridansmith1/status/16645623936
At the heart of the project is Working Title, the London-based company behind the Bridget films, as well as the musical masterpiece Billy Elliot, now in its fifth year in the West End and which this month snared a whopping 15 Tony nominations (New York theatre’s equivalent of the Oscars) for its Broadway show — a haul matching a record set by The Producers.
Author Helen Fielding, who is adapting her book for the stage, gave Sheridan Smith her blessing on Twitter with recent messages between the two including comments such as "You're a bloody genius, darling. You ARE Bridget Jones" and, more recently, "missed you too ... you were so fab", suggesting that rehearsals may already be underway.
Bridget Jones - the rest of the cast:
The new Bridget Jones musical, which is tipped for an early 2012 West End premiere, reunites Billy Elliot’s director Stephen Daldry and choreographer Peter Darling. Other rumoured cast members include Bertie Carvel and Julian Ovenden as love rivals Mark Darcy and Daniel Cleaver, while pop star Lily Allen has penned songs for the show.
Julian Ovenden
Bertie Carvel
Cassidy Janson has been a standby Elphaba in Wicked also Lucy The Slut in Avenue Q
Tiffany Graves – Helene in Sweet Charity.
It has been reported that Sheridan Smith could be in line to play Bridget Jones in the new stage version of the book.
The Daily Mail's Baz Bamigboye states that the producers behind the musical, which is so far in the planning stages, are to hold a workshop production in London next week in order to check that what they have so far is working.
Stephen Daldry of Billy Elliot fame is to direct the workshop, which will essentially be a read-through with some added choreography.
Smith, who is currently starring in Legally Blonde in the West End, is to play Bridget in this read-through, which has led to speculation that she will be first in line for the part proper.
Bridget Jones the Musical should be showing in the West End by autumn next year or early 2010, Mr Bamigboye said.
Earlier this week, the Sun reported that Lily Allen in penning the score for the production.
Sheridan Smith's next foray into the West End after Legally Blonde is strongly rumoured to be the lead role in Bridget Jones a new musical. Lily Allen is reported to be writing the music and the show is expected to be ready some time in 2012.
