Source: Rob Verhorst / Getty
Prince will be celebrated in his hometown once again. The late icon called Minneapolis home and the stage version of his Purple Rain movie will open in the city.
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Purple Rain: The Musical will debut at the State Theatre in Minneapolis in 2025, the Prince Estate announced late last week. L. Londell McMillan, who runs 50% of the Estate with partner Charles Spicer and Primary Wave, the music management company that owns the other half, said that it is the natural place to debut the adaptation of the 1984 movie, which turns 40 this year.
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“Prince talked about adapting Purple Rain for the stage for years. It’s only fitting that we launch this world premiere musical version in the city where it all began, Prince’s hometown, Minneapolis,” McMillan and Primary Wave’s founder and CEO Larry Mestel said in a joint statement. “We’re very excited for the creative team to be inspired by the Minneapolis sound and the unparalleled and unique spirit of the city that Prince inspired.”
The 1984 movie and its Oscar-winning soundtrack helped propel Prince into the stratosphere and make pop culture history. The album sold 25 million copies and spent 24 weeks at #1. In 2019, the movie was added to the Library of Congress’s National Film Registry which makes the distinction for films that are “culturally, historically or aesthetically” significant.
As previously reported, the stage version will be written by two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, based on the film’s screenplay by Albert Magnoli and the late William Blinn. The music will be taken from the movie and directed by Tony Award-nominee Lileana Blain-Cruz.
The show is expected to preview in Minneapolis before a Broadway run. So-called jukebox musicals like Tina Turner: The Musical, MJ: The Musical and Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations have done well on Broadway and on tour, with the Jackson musical winning four Tonys. Jacobs-Jenkins has said his adaptation will be a contemporary take on the original with changes in mood and Apollonia’s role.
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‘Purple Rain: The Musical’ Will Debut in Prince’s Hometown Of Minneapolis was originally published on cassiuslife.com
