Break out your square-dancing shoes, urban cowboys: TV series “Nashville” is being adapted into a Broadway musical with Scott Delman set to produce. The stage show will be Lionsgate’s first-ever Broadway production — the studio plans to do more like adaptations with some of its other intellectual property.
“‘Nashville,’ with its complex, relatable characters and sweeping emotional gestures, has all of the narrative elements that I look for in great theatrical source material. From that rich DNA, we will be building an original story with entirely original music, written by major Nashville and Broadway songwriters,” Delman, the president of Blue Spruce Productions, said on Tuesday. “We are particularly excited to deliver Broadway’s first score of true contemporary country music – a genre that has exploded with mainstream audiences in recent years. Lionsgate has a treasure-trove of sterling IP, and I’m honored to be a part of this new phase of their live entertainment division.”
Tony-winner Delman has served as producer or co-producer on 55 Broadway productions, including the musicals “American Idiot,” “Ragtime,” “Book of Mormon,” “Hello, Dolly!,” “Fun Home” and “Mean Girls.”
“‘Nashville’ represents a unique opportunity to collaborate with Tony Award-winning producer Scott Delman to bring one of our most beloved properties to the stage in our first-ever Broadway production,” added Jenefer Brown, Lionsgate SVP, Global Live & Location Based Entertainment. “It kicks off an exciting slate of iconic Lionsgate properties that we will be bringing to a variety of platforms, transforming them into events that will expand the viewing experience for their fans and take our already successful live entertainment business to the next level.”
The musical’s full creative team and production dates will be announced at a later time.
“Nashville” aired for six seasons on ABC and CMT.