"City of Stars" is coming to the city that never sleeps.
A Broadway musical based on the Oscar-winning film La La Land is in the works, Lionsgate has announced. Tony-winner Bartlett Sher, whose previous work includes South Pacific, will direct, while the book will be written by Matthew Decker and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Ayad Akhtar. It will also feature music by Justin Hurwitz, composer of the film, and lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, who wrote the movie's songs.
Directed by Damien Chazelle, the 2016 film, which adopted the style of classic movie musicals of the 1950s, is set in Los Angeles and centers on the romance between an aspiring actress, played by Emma Stone, and a jazz musician, played by Ryan Gosling. It won six Oscars in 2017, the most of any movie that year, including Best Director for Chazelle, Best Actress for Stone, Best Original Score for Hurwitz, and Best Original Song for Hurwitz, Pasek, and Paul. It also received 14 nominations, tying the record for the most of any film in history.
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"I'm thrilled to reunite with Lionsgate and the incredible team behind La La Land to adapt the movie for the Broadway stage, the next exciting chapter in its evolution," producer Marc Platt said. "We've assembled a world-class team to create a musical that will delight La La Land's millions of current fans and introduce the property to a whole new audience."
This is also the latest Oscar-winning film headed to the stage after it was announced that CODA, which won the Best Picture Oscar in 2022, would get a musical adaptation. Unlike CODA, La La Land did not ultimately win Best Picture, though it was famously incorrectly announced as the winner. So, Broadway fans, don't be surprised to show up to see La La Land, only to get a Moonlight musical instead.
