A musical about Neil Diamond is coming to Broadway.
Producers Ken Davenport and Bob Gaudio have announced a new, as-yet-untitled stage production which documents the life and career of the legendary musician, using an array of the 72-year-old singer’s greatest hits.
Diamond shared in a statement: "I’ve always loved Broadway. The inspiration for many of my early songs came from shows like West Side Story, My Fair Lady and Fiddler On The Roof.
"So it seems only fitting to bring my songs to The Great White Way. I’m honoured and excited to be working with this great team."
The project – which is based book by Anthony McCarten, who also worked on the Oscar-winning Queen biopic ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ – will be helmed by Michael Mayer and will include well-loved hits such as ‘Sweet Caroline’, ‘America’, ‘Song Sung Blue’ and ‘I’ve Been This Way Before.’
McCarten added: "On the mantle-piece in my childhood home in New Zealand, there were always two pictures: one was of the Pope, the other of Neil Diamond.
"The epic musical catalogue of this Rock and Roll Hall of Famer flowed endlessly off our family record player.
"As a child you took it into yourself, and to this day I can recite the lyrics of his hits deep into their second or third verses. Imagine my excitement, then, when the opportunity arose to work with Neil on a musical based on his life and music. A very, very easy and so sweet ‘Yes!’"
And Gaudio also noted: "Having been intimately associated with one very special biographical musical, I am clearly a fan of the form.
"And as a fellow member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, I remain in awe of Neil Diamond’s contribution to American popular culture, music, and of his incredible life story."
A Neil Diamond musical is coming to Broadway
