The infamously ill-fated music festival Fyre Festival will become the subject of a new stage musical, being led by producers Taika Waititi, Rita Ora, Matthew Weaver, and Hungry Man Productions.
Fyre Fest The Musical will be directed by Bryan Buckley, who's also writing the show's book and producing via his Hungry Man banner. Oscar, Golden Globe, and seven-time Grammy winner Paul Epworth is penning the music, and David Korins (Hamilton) will provide scenic design.
The project will center on the life story of event planner and convicted fraudster Billy McFarland, whose 2017 Fyre Festival became a fiasco of epic proportions. Having promised a luxury experience, guests arrived to disorganization and near squalor and a rapidly depleting roster of artists still willing to perform. The entire event was ultimately canceled, leaving the guests who had already arrived stranded. The event led to McFarland's 2018 conviction on charges of wire fraud, for which he was sentenced to six years in prison. McFarland, who ultimately only served four years of that sentence, has since unsuccessfully attempted to revive the concept, with similarly chaotic results. The tale has already resulted in two film documentaries, Netflix's Fyre and Hulu's Fyre Fraud.
Buckley is primarily a film director and producer, with a long career making commercials. His feature films include The Bronze and The Pirates of Somalia, and his short films Asad and Saria were both Academy Award nominees. It appears that Fyre Fest would be Buckley's first stage project.
“I never saw myself doing a theatrical musical comedy,” says Buckley in a statement. “But then again, I never saw something completely mind-bendingly ridiculous and intriguing as what went down with Fyre Festival. A spectacular failed endeavor—that will haunt a generation forever. I cannot wait to get this show out to the world. And yeah man, this time there will actually be music or your money back.”
“Working in the theatre is always fun,” adds Taika Waititi, himself an Oscar-nominated filmmaker whose screen credits include Jojo Rabbit and Thor: Ragnarok. “I mean I haven't done it for 15 years because it was no longer fun, but I've been told it will be fun this time. And I believe them. When Bryan Buckley told me he wanted to make a musical about the Fyre Festival, I said 'Who the hell is Bryan Buckley?' I then remembered we've been friends and work mates for 15 years so it was kinda hard to say no. Honestly, I think the idea is exciting, weird, and potentially disastrous, which seems apt and is how I like to work. I can't wait to get started and snatch me some of that sweet American theatre money.”
The project launched September 8 with an event in Brooklyn, which followed the release of a 100-foot barge from Staten Island. Producers are planning more guerilla art installations in New York City throughout the week.
