Prince. Photo by Bertrand Guay/AFP via Getty Images
The classic 1984 film Purple Rain, starring and soundtracked by the music of Prince, is being revived as a stage musical, The New York Times and Variety report. The upcoming adaptation will be directed by Lileana Blain-Cruz and feature a retooled script from Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, based on the original screenplay by Albert Magnoli and William Blinn. The play’s producer, Orin Wolf — who has also produced the Tony-winning Broadway adaptation of The Band’s Visit, as well as the currently running Buena Vista Social Club musical — announced the news Monday morning.
Further details of the Purple Rain musical’s production (including the date and location of its opening) have yet to be announced. The heads of The NorthStar Group and Primary Wave Music, both major rightsholders to portions of Prince’s estate, wrote in a joint press statement that they couldn’t “think of a more fitting tribute than to honor Prince and the Purple Rain legacy with this stage adaptation of the beloved story.”
The original film version of Purple Rain, which tells the story of The Kid (Prince), a troubled but talented and ambitious Minneapolis musician, was a smash box office hit, grossing nearly $100 million worldwide against a $7.2 million budget. Its official soundtrack won two Grammys, as well as an Academy Award for Best Original Score. It remains Prince’s most commercially successful album and one of the bestselling albums of all time, with 25 million copies sold globally.
