No more remakes! Well, okay, maybe this one, BUT DON'T CHANGE A FUCKING THING!
There are no more good idea out there in the Los Angeles or New York it seems. Following some of the big movie blockbusters and plays you will see that many are adapted from books and even plays are being adapted from movies.
Before we move on to the movie-to-play transformation in question, let me share a little bit of gossip. I attended an opening social for an art festival last week. As we entered, we were asked to write the name of our favorite actor / actress on our name tag underneath our own name. I put Chiwetel Ejiofor – A) to be different and B) he's way up there on my list, being the lead in one of my favorite movies, Kinky Boots.
I started to mingle and people were reading each others' name tags. I started conversing with this woman Diane, let's call her Diane. That might be her real name or it might have been changed to protect the innocent, or it could be that I blocked her out of my mind due to her wonderful disposition. I had to explain to her who Chiwetel was and I asked her if she had ever heard of Firefly, 12 Years A Slave, or Kinky Boots. She stated she knew Kinky Boots so I stated he was one of the leads in the Kinky Boots movie. She responded, "There was a movie? I had no idea." To that I said, "Oh yes, it's one of my favorite movies. It's 1,000 times better than the musical. You should check it out." Her response was that she had some kind of relative that was a producer of THE musical and then literally / physically gave me the cold shoulder!
And maybe that is what I am afraid of when people sink their claws into one of the greatest movies of all time that as just added to the list of adaptations from screen-to-stage. Clue, the 1985 mega huge mega cult movie is next.
"We are thrilled to be announcing CLUE as the next stage adaptation developed by our Media & Entertainment division," said Michael Barra, President, Media & Entertainment at The Araca Group. "CLUE is an iconic film with a passionate fan base, and Jonathan Lynn is the ideal collaborator to bring these beloved characters and story to the stage."
"CLUE is one of Hasbro's most popular games and the 1985 film has rightfully earned its place as one of the most iconic murder mystery films of all time," said Simon Waters, Hasbro General Manager & SVP Entertainment & Consumer Products "We are excited to work with The Araca Group on this unique new live production, which will capture what fans love about the original film, while offering some new and exciting surprises along the way."
"CLUE is one of those rare titles that transcends genre," adds Stephen Gabriel, president of Work Light Productions. "The movie's unique blend of witty dialogue, physical comedy and surprise twists created a film event that will thrive on the live stage." – broadwayworld.com
Don't fuck it up people. It had better not be people like Diane that won't know there was a movie and do their own thing without protecting the awesomeness that was the original.
But then again, should they try to literally remake the movie? Should they try to copy exactly how Eileen Brennan played Mrs. Peacock so masterfully? Will they attempt to Martin Mull-ify Colonel Mustard? Could they come close to mimeographing Madeline Kahn in the best scene from the movie?
Clue has been performed across the country in play form, musical form, and even as dinner theatre with audiences trying to figure out which one of the 216 combinations is the truth for that evening.
Happily, the second act kept me much more interested. There were better dance numbers and the pacing seemed to pick up. In addition to Ms. Eyestone Burron’s polished performance, Melissa Swift-Sawyer, who plays the detective is another scene-stealer. Ms. Swift-Sawyer had to do a string of singing and dancing numbers that made me tired just watching.
There’s a high level of silliness in this production, including the suspicious housekeeper, Mrs. White, who is played by a male in drag. He/she reminded me of a Monty Python character. – heiditown.com
I'm very happy the powers that be are not making it a musical or another movie, or at least that is what they are telling us currently. But will it be a good play? If it had to be remade since there are no more good ideas, I think a play is the best option. Just keep Diane's relative away from it.
And just one more possibly cringe worthy fact …
The play marks the second live entertainment project announced between Araca and Hasbro, after the Broadway-bound musical adaptation of Monopoly announced earlier this year.
h/t: broadwayworld.com