Fans ofThe Notebook,rejoice! The 2004Ryan Gosling/Rachel McAdamsromance, based on Nicholas Sparks’ 1996 heartbreaker, is making the jump from the big screen to the stage in a new Broadway-bound musical.
Bekah Brunstetter, a producer and writer onThis Is Us,is penning the musical’s book. She’s also the screenwriter on the upcoming film adaptation of the self-help book,The Secret, which will starKatie Holmesand Josh Lucas.
No casting or premiere dates have been announced yet, but Michaelson was excited to finally be able to spill the beans about the project onToday —explaining that she’s been working on the music for about a year and a half.
“It’s been a long process for me,” the 39-year-old musician said. “But it’s been slowly building. … I haven’t been able to talk about it because we’ve been in negotiations and getting directors and stuff. But finally, my producers signed off and said this is a perfect way to announce it.”
“Oh god, I feel like I’ve birthed a child,” she joked, taking a deep breath.
“It’s so different when you’re writing for a character, when you’re writing for these other people, than when you’re writing about yourself or your own emotions,” she said. “So it’s been really interesting and really different for me to write from these perspectives. And just the idea of this undying love and of loss and memory — I can’t stop writing them. I’m going to have too many.”
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Michaelson — a Staten Island native who made her Broadway debut as an actress inNatasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812in 2017 — understands loss, having lost both her parents recently.
Chase himself is a Tony-nominated Broadway star, with an upcoming role in the revival ofKiss Me Kate. “We’re just a Broadway couple!” Michaelson joked.
The Notebookhas become one of the most beloved romances in film history. It tells the story of mill worker Noah Calhoun and rich girl Allie, lovers who fall for one another on the eve of World War II.
Elsewhere on Thursday, the musical’s creative team sent statements to the press about the upcoming project.
“When I first heard aboutThe Notebookpotentially being turned into a musical, I was instantly drawn to the idea,” Brunstetter wrote. “The story hits home for me in two big ways: it takes place in my home state of North Carolina, and Alzheimer’s runs deep in my family. I was sent a few songs Ingrid had already written for it, and that week, I spent my drives to and from work car-listening, memorizing, imagining the story unfold with music, imagining how I might layer worlds, dramatize memory, and before I even knew that I had to write the book for this, it was already starting to happen in my head. The older you get, it seems, the more invisible you become, and yet, you have SO much to say — so putting an older couple at the forefront of a musical is thrilling to me. I am so excited to continue collaborating with Ingrid on bringing this beautiful story to life in a new way.”
Added Michaelson, “When I was approached about working onThe NotebookI had to excuse myself and go to the bathroom and cry and come back into the meeting. I have loved the movie and the story for so many years now that the idea of turning it into a musical overwhelmed me. The concept of unending devotion and love wrapped up in memory and family is something very close to my own personal life. The story sings to me so perfectly. I actually started writing that very night of the first meeting, before I even had the job! I cannot wait for the world to hear these characters come to life in a musical way.”
Said Sparks in a statement: “I am thrilled to work with Bekah and Ingrid in order to makeThe Notebooka reality on Broadway. They are amazingly talented, and obviously, the story is near and dear to my heart.”
source: people.com
