Prince’s legacy is about to hit Broadway.
Orin Wolf has announced that Prince’s epochal film and album, Purple Rain, will be adapted for the stage.
Based on the original screenplay by Albert Magnoli and William Blinn, the stage adaptation of Purple Rain will be written by FX’s Kindred creator Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, with direction by Tony Award-nominee Lileana Blain-Cruz.
“It’s been almost 40 years since Prince’s legendary film, Purple Rain, took the world by storm and we can’t think of a more fitting tribute than to honor Prince and the Purple Rain legacy with this stage adaptation of the beloved story,” said L Londell McMillan, Chairman of The NorthStar Group, and Larry Mestel, Founder & CEO of Primary Wave Music. “We are thrilled with our Broadway partners and creative team, who are bringing a theatricality to the film’s original fictional story. We can’t wait for a new generation to discover Purple Rain and for lovers of the original film and album to experience its power once again, this time live.”
Originally released in 1984, Purple Rain tells the fictional story of The Kid, an up-and-coming rock musician in the Minneapolis club scene as he overcomes a dysfunctional home environment and rival musicians, all the while dealing with a budding romance. Purple Rain grossed $100 million worldwide and is widely regarded to be one of the greatest musical films of all time.
Regarded as one of the greatest musicians of all time, Prince sold over 150 million records worldwide and is the recipient of seven Grammy Awards, seven Brit Awards, six American Music Awards, four MTV Video Awards, and an Academy Award for Best Original Score for Purple Rain, and a Golden Globe Award.