Death Becomes Her stars Megan Hilty, Jennifer Simard, and Michelle Williams joined Mo Rocca on CBS Sunday Morning to talk about bringing the iconic 1992 film to the stage, from what it's like to step into roles created by legendary A-listers like Meryl Streep, Goldie Hawn, and Isabella Rossellini; to achieving the film's CGI-laden effects live onstage every night; and more. Watch the full piece above.
The musical, which opened on Broadway November 21, 2024, continues its run at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre. An original Broadway cast recording will release from Concord Theatricals Recordings April 17. Christopher Gattelli directs and choreographs.
The cast is led by Hilty and Simard as Madeline Ashton and Helen Sharp, respectively, two rivals who gain eternal youth via a magic potion with some dirty side effects. Christopher Sieber and Williams are co-starring as Ernest Menville and Viola Van Horn, respectively. All four are reprising their performances from the musical's Chicago pre-Broadway tryout.
Joining them are Taurean Everett as Chagall, Josh Lamon as Stefan; and Marija Abney, Lauren Celentano, Sarita Colón, Kaleigh Cronin, Natalie Charle Ellis, Michael Graceffa, Neil Haskell, Kolton Krouse, Sarah Meahl, Ximone Rose, Sir Brock Warren, Bud Weber, Ryan Worsing, and Warren Yang. Swings Kyle Brown, Lakota Knuckle, Johanna Moise, and Amy Quanbeck round out the company. Casting is by Tara Rubin Casting.
The work features a book by Marco Pennette, adapted from the screenplay by Martin Donovan and David Koepp; and songs by Julia Mattison and Noel Carey.
The production features scenic design by Derek McLane, costume design by Paul Tazewell, lighting design by Justin Townsend, sound design by Peter Hylenski, hair and wig design by Charles J. LaPointe, makeup design by Joe Dulude II, fight direction by Cha Ramos, music supervision by Mary-Mitchell Campbell, music direction by Ben Cohn, orchestrations by Doug Besterman, and dance and incidental music arrangements by Sam Davis. Rachel Sterner is production stage manager.
The film, directed and co-produced by Robert Zemeckis, was noted for its relatively early use of CGI to achieve effects like star Meryl Streep's head turned completely backwards and a gaping hole going through her co-star Goldie Hawn. This musical version has been kicking around since at least 2017, when Kristin Chenoweth was attached to star, then with a separate creative team.
Universal Theatrical Group—overseen by Jimmy Horowitz and led by Lowe Cunningham—is producing.
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