Andrew Lloyd Webber Brings Cinderella To Broadway -- With A Twist!

Love fairy tales and mythology?
Fans of mermaids, dragons, unicorns, and other mythical creatures?
Enjoy when a beloved classic tale is retold?
A Twist in the Tail Thursdays features all this and more!

Recently, composer Andrew Lloyd Webber (Phantom of the Opera, Cats, Evita) hosted a London workshop at The Other Palace for the latest musical he's been working on, revolving around the tale of Cinderella. I always have an ear out for fairy tale related news, and when fairy tales come to Broadway? *chef's kiss* I was immediately intrigued, and hoped the musical would make it out of workshops and find its way to Broadway. Workshops can gauge an audience's interest and showcase what does/doesn't work. It's also a place for a show to find financing. Many shows don't live outside of their workshops, or come to Broadway years later as completely re-tooled, unrecognizable beasts -- sometimes down to the title.

I was surprised to hear that Lloyd Webber's Cinderella was greenlit for Broadway so fast -- but I'm not complaining! Lloyd Webber was interviewed by Good Morning Britain and stated that he has plans to bring the show to Broadway in 2020. The musical is helmed with lyrics from David Zippel lyrics for City of Angels, The Woman in White), a book written by Emerald Fennel (Killing Eve Season 2 Showrunner, Call the Midwife actress), and writer Tom MacRae (Everybody's Talking About Jamie, book and lyrics). I'm excited to see Zippel's name on the list because The Woman in White is perhaps my favorite Lloyd Webber show, though it was flawed and lesser-known and shuttered on Broadway much too soon. It's based on one of my favorite classic novels, written by Wilkie Collins, and the music was more Sondheim in tone than other Lloyd Webber shows (And Sondheim is my favorite composer, so!) So I'm instantly extra-excited for his lyrics paired with the tale of Cinderella.

Not much is known yet about the show itself, other than that it will be a modern interpretation of the tale. Lloyd Webber stated, "They have remade Cinderella into a completely modern, feisty girl...  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." This is a new version of Cinderella where our heroine falls head over heels for an "awkward oddball" named Sebastian, while Prince Charming will fall in love with a duke in an LGBT twist. I, for one, can't wait to hear more about the show and already know what I'll be seeing next year!

For an extra special treat, check out Lloyd Webber's recent Good Morning Broadway interview, which includes chatting about Taylor Swift in the upcoming movie adaptation of Cats and singing with the hosts!


Oh, and you want to hear more about the movie version of Cats? The first trailer just dropped last week. Take a look and tell me your thoughts!





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