Pop superstar Elton John unveiled Thursday his return to Broadway with a musical adaptation of the blockbuster film and novel “The Devil Wears Prada.”
John will write the music for “The Devil Wears Prada,” with lyrics to be penned by Paul Rudnick, a humorist who frequently writes for The New Yorker magazine.
“Reimagining ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ for the musical theatre is super exciting,” John said in a statement, which added that the production timeline will be announced later.
“I’m a huge fan of both the book and the feature film, and a huge aficionado of the fashion world. I can’t wait to sink my musical teeth into this hunk of popular culture,” the English musician said.
While Broadway is notoriously tough terrain even for famous names, John has a proven record of triumph with musicals.
“The Lion King,” his musical adaptation of the Disney animated film, set the record as the first show to gross $1 billion on Broadway where it remains the third longest-running show in history.
He also found success with a musical adaptation of Verdi’s opera “Aida” as well as “Billy Elliot the Musical,” which closed last year after a successful run on London’s West End.
Meryl Street and Anne Hathaway starred in the 2006 film “The Devil Wears Prada” about an all-powerful fashion magazine editor who tyrannically imposes her will on an ambitious young editorial assistant.
A major international box-office success, “The Devil Wears Prada” was based on the popular novel of the same name by Lauren Weisberger. The author formerly worked for longtime Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour, although she has never confirmed that Wintour was the inspiration.
