The Paper Mill just announced its most ambitious line-up in history

[bvgrimaldi]

Paper Mill has a bunch of new shows including:

The Honeymooners

Annie (Not new but a classic)

The Outsider

The Sting

and Half Time

http://www.nj.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2017/02/paper_mill_2017-18_season_the_honeymooners_half_ti.html#incart_river_home

[GreasedLightning]

I wouldn't call Annie ambitious. 

[g.d.e.l.g.i.]

I think the fact that three out of four shows in their season are new is what the OP was alluding to with their word choice.

[AC126748]

Technically, only The Honeymooners and The Sting are new (as in, world premiere). Half-Time has had a major regional production already.

[bvgrimaldi]

Half Time was formerly named, Gotta Dance.  Since it's run in Chicago, it has had many updates to the show.

[IdinaBellFoster]

Interesting that HALF-TIME is slated for Spring/Summer 2018? I thought they might try to get it to Broadway next season.

[disneybroadwayfan22]

Oh, wow. If all of these shows come on Broadway, Paper Mill is about to be rewarded handsomely (I am assuming).

[Cfried]

What a thrilling season!!

[Ado Annie D'Ysquith]

The Honeymooners musical is finally gaining some traction. Word. But they'd better get Michael McGrath back for Ralph...there is really no one else who can do it justice.

Between this, The Sting, and Half Time, Papermill seems determined to move every new musical it produces onto Broadway. They are definitely riding the Bronx Tale/Bandstand high at the moment.

[freewilma]

I hadn't heard about this musical version of The Sting before now.  I know there is a straight play, but I'm excited to see how the musical develops.  I LOVED that movie.  

[freewilma]

I hadn't heard about this musical version of The Sting before now.  I know there is a straight play, but I'm excited to see how the musical develops.  I LOVED that movie.  

[Mister Matt]

Hollman and Kotis for The Sting has me very interested.  The rest...not so much.  Saw Gotta Dance in Chicago and I can only say, I hope it gets a LOT better for Papermill.

[Wayman_Wong]

I agree with bvgrimaldi. It IS Paper Mill's most ambitious season (acknowledging that ''Annie'' is the one Broadway classic that's perfect for their family audiences). They're doing TWO world premieres, and two East Coast premieres, and one of them is even a play (!). Compare that to Paper Mill's past, which was largely remounting many Rodgers & Hammerstein shows, plus warhorses, like ''Gypsy,'' ''Mame,'' ''Hello, Dolly!'' and other proven tried-and-true crowdpleasers. Now they're got a track record of new musicals going to Broadway: ''Newsies,'' ''Honeymoon in Vegas,'' ''A Bronx Tale,'' ''Bandstand.'' Maybe this attention helped Paper Mill finally get a Tony for Regional Theater after all these decades. More than putting it on the map, I'll assume that Paper Mill stands to benefit financially long-term by these associations.

[TheSassySam]

I don't understand why people are trying to make Half-Time happen. Gotta Dance was a bit too messy and cheap when I saw it in Chicago. 

Hopefully, there are a lot of changes. 

[zainmax]

Jerry Mitchell told me that the show was going directly to Bway, so I'm guessing that they realized that the show needed a lot of work in Chicago. Chris Jones is usually pretty good at identifying weaknesses.

I remember reading about The Sting a long time ago. Any word on its creative team?

[Mister Matt]

The article states:

John Rando will again return to the theater starting in March 2018 for "The Sting, a new musical" -- another world premiere, based on the classic Paul Newman-Robert Redford film. The composers are Mark Hollmann and Greg Kotis, who wrote "Urinetown."

[Wayman_Wong]

But will the musical of ''The Sting'' use any of Scott Joplin's rags? The Oscar-winning movie is so identified with ''The Entertainer.''

[Cfried]

Wayman_Wong said: "But will the musical of ''The Sting'' use any of Scott Joplin's rags? The Oscar-winning movie is so identified with ''The Entertainer.'"

"The Entertainer" will reportedly be part of the score. It will be opening the show, similar to how the Addams Family theme opened ADDAMS FAMILY before the overture. 

[EchoParker]

Re: The Sting, I read elsewhere (related to this season announcement) that Bob Martin is writing the book. Composer/lyricists I love (working with their director from Urinetown), a book writer (Drowsy Chaperone) I love, adapting a film I... vaguely remember loving. This one has me genuinely excited. 

And several people I know who were involved with workshops of Honeymooners said the material was great. And I know no casts have been announced, but I would pay money to watch Michael McGrath and Hank Azaria just riff for two hours as those two characters. 

[Wayman_Wong]

Thanks for the info, CFried. Mark Hollman and Greg Kotis won Tony Awards for ''Urinetown'' in 2002. Who could've guessed that 15 years would go by before their next Broadway project?

(Did other efforts close out of town? What have they been doing?)

And does ''The Honeymooners'' use its iconic TV theme, too?

Thanks in advance to anyone with the answers!