BREAKING NEWS: She's READY FOR HER CLOSEUP!!! Update announcements have been revealed for the film adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Award winning legendary musical Sunset Boulevard.
According to the film's producer and star Glenn Close who will reprise her Tony Award winning performance as the faded silent movie star "Norma Desmond" on the big screen, she spoke to Vogue Magazine earlier this week to say THEY'RE READY!!! With high hopes for a Green Light ASAP, production on the SUNSET BOULEVARD movie is aiming to happen either 2021 or 2022.
The film version of SUNSET BOULEVARD is expecting to be directed by Tony winning director and choreographer Rob Ashford and will feature a screenplay written by Tom MacRae.
In case anyone may not know or remember, the musical is based on Billy Wilder's Oscar winning 1950 Hollywood horror film of the same name. It tells the story of "Norma Desmond" (played by Close), a faded and eccentric silent-movie star who draws an unsuccessful film writer into her fantasy world of wanting to make a triumphant comeback on the big screen. Some of the notable songs include LET'S HAVE LUNCH, WITH ONE LOOK, NEW WAYS TO DREAM, SUNSET BOULEVARD, and the beautifully haunting AS IF WE NEVER SAID GOODBYE.
SUNSET BOULEVARD originally premiered in London's West End at the Adelphi Theatre in July 1993 where it ran for 1,530 performances. Under the direction of Sir Trevor Nunn, the cast was originally led by….
Patti LuPone (later Petula Clark, Betty Buckley, Dame Elaine Paige, and Rita Moreno) later in the lead role of "Norma Desmond".
The production originally opened to mixed reviews especially around LuPone's performance. UK audiences loved her but American audiences were not happy saying LuPone was a complete "miscast". The original version was not well received at first. However when the show began preparing for its American debut (originally with LuPone reprising the role of "Norma Desmond"), it went through a full revamp stage.
A few months after its world premiere in the UK, the show had its American premiere in Los Angeles at the Shubert Theatre running for over a year. This was led by….
Glenn Close as "Norma Desmond" earning rave reviews and giving the show more of a positive boost.
With the response of Close's performance, Webber and the creative team went in a brand new direction by casting Glenn for Broadway and ended up firing Patti LuPone (who also has been reported for unprofessional behavior). Interesting enough, no one from the team told LuPone she would be fired till it was headlined in the newspapers by Liz Smith in giant bold letters….. GLENN AS NORMA. According to LuPone's memoir, when she found out about the change in casting, Patti threw the ultimate diva temper tantrum by taking a baseball bat and tore her entire dressing room down (pretty much like when those 80's rock stars damage hotel rooms). LuPone filed a lawsuit against Lloyd Webber and received a settlement reported to be over $1 million.
In addition, Faye Dunaway was originally set to replace Close in LA in bringing the show to NYC. However, she also got fired because Lloyd Webber said her singing choice was not strong enough for the role. Instead of continuing and not getting a new "Norma", the LA production closed. Dunaway filed a lawsuit saying her reputation has been destroyed. The lawsuit got settled and the producers paid her a settlement.
The Broadway production of SUNSET BOULEVARD arrived at the Minskoff Theatre in November 1994 playing a total of 1,146 performances. Close (along with Buckley, Clark, and Paige) reprised the role of "Norma Desmond" through its New York run.
It was nominated for 11 Tony Awards in 1995 winning 8 including BEST MUSICAL & BEST PERFORMANCE BY A LEADING ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL (for Close who also hosted that year's ceromony and held in the Minskoff).
The show later went on to haunt audiences on tour across America and around the world.
Most recently, SUNSET BOULEVARD made its return to both London and our Broadway backyard with an acclaimed semi-staged production (done as a concert staging with a full orchestra on stage) from the English National Opera. It played a strictly limited engagement at the London Coliseum. From there, it went on to play Broadway's Palace Theatre for a strictly limited engagement of 152 performances. Under the direction of Lonny Price, the cast was led by…..
Glenn Close reprising the role of "Norma Desmond" 23 years later!!!
Who is excited to see Glenn COME HOME AT LAST to her signature role now done on the big screen? Could this film FINALLY give Glenn her long overdue Oscar win?!
Glenn Close on Sunset Boulevard film: ‘We’re ready’ | WhatsOnStage
Close has updated fans of the musical on its progress to the silver screen
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