A musical adaptation of the bestselling novel “The Notebook” will premiere on Broadway on March 14.
Previews of the story about a lifelong romance inspired by novelist Nicholas Sparks’ grandparents are set to begin at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theater on Feb. 6, The New York Times reported.
The 1996 novel shot to the top of the bestseller list the week it was released and stayed on the list for more than a year. A 2004 movie based on the book helped launch the careers of Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams as it booked $117.8 million in box office sales.
The stage show was developed in 2019 and the pandemic-delayed musical adaptation, featuring songs by Ingrid Michaelson, premiered in Chicago last year to positive reviews.
The story uses flashbacks to tell the star-crossed love story of the couple, the middle-class Noah Calhoun and socialite Allie Hamilton. He reads the segments from a notebook to his wife, who suffers from dementia. The Chicago production featured three sets of actors who played the couple at various points in their lives.
In multiple scenes, the older couple watches the younger versions play out moments from their past.
Casting for the Broadway production has not been announced, the Times reported, but the Chicago cast cannot appear in full. John Beasley, who played the older Noah in Chicago, died in May.
The Times reported that the Chicago creative team will be on hand for the Broadway run. They include co-directors Michael Greif, known for Tony-winners “Dear Evan Hansen” and “Rent” and Schele Williams, known for Tony-honored “Aida,” and “The Wiz,” and choreograpuer Katie Spelman, who was associate choreographer of “Moulin Rouge! The Musical”
The book is by “This is Us” writer Bekah Brunstetter.
The producers are Kevin McCollum, who most recently backed the hit “Six,” and Kurt Deutsch, an executive at Warner Music Group.
