Entertainment News
2005-09-27
Oprah to
coproduce Color Purple musical on Broadway
Oprah Winfrey,
who made her name as an actress in the 1985 film The
Color Purple , will coproduce a new Broadway
Oprah Winfrey,
who made her name as an actress in the 1985 film The
Color Purple, will coproduce a new Broadway
musical based on the Pulitzer Prize–winning book. The
producers said on Monday that Winfrey would make a
"seven-figure investment" in the musical version of
The Color Purple, which draws on both the
book and the film. The show opens in New York City in
December after running in previews starting on November 1.
The musical tells
the story of a young black girl growing up in the early
1900s and will feature gospel, jazz, ragtime, and blues. The
show's other producers include music impresario Quincy
Jones and Scott Sanders, who has said the production
cost more than $10 million to develop.
Winfrey told
The New York Times she planned to help
promote the show by featuring members of the cast on her
daytime television talk show. "It's been a secret
dream of mine to be part of Broadway," the newspaper
quoted her as saying.
Steven
Spielberg's film adaptation of the Alice Walker book marked
Winfrey's feature-film debut, and she was nominated for an
Academy Award for her supporting role of Sofia. The
premiere of The Color Purple musical in Atlanta last
year received lukewarm reviews but set box-office
records for the Alliance Theatre there. The Atlanta
Journal–Constitution pronounced it "promising but
uneven," saying a lurching plot and other shortcomings
distracted from its strong performances and design.
The musical has
been extensively revised since then, and Winfrey's
involvement is expected to raise its profile—and
advance ticket sales—considerably. "I hope to
be able to do for this production some of what I've
been able to do for books—that is, to open the door
to the possibilities for a world of people who have
never been or even thought of going to a Broadway
show." Winfrey's Book Club, launched in 1996, is one
of the biggest sales drivers in the U.S. publishing
industry. (Reuters)
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