Following the news that TV’s Smash is headed for Broadway, Variety reports that script readings are underway. The upcoming adaptation will retaining the original songwriting team (see here), who also composed the musical adaptation of Some Like It Hot, still going strong after winning four Tony Awards in June. However, it’s still unclear how the Marilyn-inspired narrative arc will be interpolated.
“Smash, the TV series about the making of a fictional Broadway musical, takes an early step toward becoming a real-life Broadway musical on Sept. 22, with a pair of industry readings led by Tony nominees Robyn Hurder and Kerry Butler.
Hurder (A Beautiful Noise, Moulin Rouge!) plays Ivy, an actress cast in the lead role of a new musical about Marilyn Monroe, and Butler appears as Karen, Ivy’s understudy. Their characters share the names of two pivotal roles in the TV show, which also focused on the development of a Marilyn Monroe musical called Bombshell.
While it retains the series’ most recognieable elements, the musical adaptation of Smash departs in other ways with a storyline and cast of characters that are inspired by the series but not direct translations. ‘It’s definitely a new script,’ said director Susan Stroman of the musical’s book by Bob Martin (The Prom) and Rick Elice (Jersey Boys). ‘It has a dramatic twist at the end of it. But you will see familiar characters.’
The two invite-only readings, to be held at Open Jar Studios in midtown Manhattan, mark the culmination of a two-week developmental lab. Given the potential for changes in the show’s creative needs and in actor availability, none of the performers are guaranteed to be involved in the project beyond this week’s readings. Still, the cast and the roles they play nonetheless offer a glimpse into the ongoing development of a property that’s built up a cult fanbase in the years since the two-season series ended in 2013.
Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman (Hairspray, Some Like It Hot), who wrote songs for the series, pen the score for the Smash musical, which will feature their tunes from the TV show (including ‘Let Me Be Your Star’ and ‘They Just Keep Moving the Line’) as well as new songs. The musical is produced by Steven Spielberg, Robert Greenblatt and Neil Meron, who were all integral to getting the series onscreen (Spielberg and Meron as producers and Greenblatt as then-chairman of NBC).
In describing the developing show, Stroman and her producers all emphasized the stage musical’s embrace of comedy. ‘Steven Spielberg’s advice from the beginning was to make the stage version of Smash very funny, and Bob Martin and Rick Elice are two of the funniest book writers working on Broadway today,’ Greenblatt said.
Meron added that Stroman’s experience with comedy, including her Tony-winning staging of The Producers, made her a good fit for the project. ‘The Producers is the most hilarious backstage musical ever and Smash feels a little bit like its cousin, he said.
Although Stroman often works as a director-choreographer, for Smash she’s serving solely as the director with choreography by Josh Bergasse, who won an Emmy for his choreography for the series.
The two upcoming readings of Smash will be performed at music stands. Choreography and staging will be developed in a six-week workshop scheduled for February, ahead of a Broadway opening targeting the 2024-25 season. No out-of-town tryout is currently planned.”
The Marilyn Report 
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