Andrew Lloyd Webber Says His Mona Lisa Musical Will Open in London Next Fall

Andrew Lloyd Webber has revealed that his Mona Lisa musical will be "fully open" in London next fall. After announcing the musical earlier this year, the composer shared in a new interview with the Independent that he is hoping for a September opening in the UK.

The story for the musical is based on true events that took place in 1911, when the iconic painting was stolen from the Louvre by Louvre employee Vincenzo Peruggia, an Italian patriot who believed that the painting should have been returned to an Italian museum.

The Phantom of the Opera writer states that the story fascinates him because the painting was not popular before it was stolen.

"I read this fantastic story about the fact that the Mona Lisa ... nobody noticed it, nobody looked at it. It was considered to be okay, you know, Leonardo’s scholars quite liked it, but nobody came to the Louvre to look. It was hung in a dreadful place."

He goes on to reveal that the Mona Lisa becomes a fully-fledged character once she is stolen.

"Mona, I have to say, has got to a lot to say about life. She is not a blushing flower when she’s out of that frame because he had to take her out of the frame. She comes out of the frame, alright, she does."

The musical comes just as Lloyd Webber celebrates two years of sobriety. He reveals that after he publicly quit drinking as School of Rock was coming to Broadway, he began to secretly drink again after worrying that his work would not be as strong without alcohol.

"I had a clear head for two years, and I started worrying about whether or not I could write music without alcohol, but because I had, I suppose, made sort of public thing about it, I started to drink secretly... So I put myself, I mean, you're not supposed to really talk about it, but I put myself into AA. It was a really coming up for 2 years ago now. And I’ve never looked back. I mean, I now just feel completely fantastic."