Roundabout's Todd Haimes on DEATH TAKES A HOLIDAY

The story at the heart of Death Takes a Holiday has taken many forms over the years. It first came to life (so to speak) as La Morte in Vacanza, written in 1924 by the Italian writer Alberto Casella. Originally billed as a "supernatural comedy," it was to be Casella's only major success outside of his home country, but what a success it was. Coming to Broadway in 1929, the play was seen in a popular English-language version by Walter Ferris and was first given the title Death Takes a Holiday. After that production's success, the play was also made into a beloved 1934 film starring Fredric March and would continue to appear in many forms over the following decades.

Now, a team of some of the best creative minds I've had the pleasure of working with have come together to bring Death Takes a Holiday to the stage as a musical. Composer-lyricist Maury Yeston, with whom Roundabout had such a wonderful collaboration on the Tony-winning 2003 revival of Nine, and Peter Stone, librettist of such classics as 1776 and My One and Only, first began writing this musical more than a decade ago. When Peter passed away in 2003, Maury turned to another of the greatest librettists in the business, the brilliant Thomas Meehan, who is responsible for works as diverse as Annie and The Producers. Maury and Tom brought the show to me in 2008, and we decided to find out what Roundabout's Resident Director, Doug Hughes, might see in the piece. Doug may not be known for working on musicals, but there was something about the scope of this particular musical, its epic themes co-existing so beautifully with its intimate story, that we all thought would be a good match for his talents. Happily, Doug was as taken with Death Takes a Holiday as I was, and here we are, after three years of readings and rewrites, ready to share this new musical with you on the stage of the Laura Pels Theatre.

What I find so interesting is that the appeal of Death Takes a Holiday has lasted so long. With the exception of a less-than-beloved 1998 film version called Meet Joe Black, in which Brad Pitt played Death, the story at the heart of this piece has continued to enchant audiences for decade after decade. What is it about this tale that still fascinates?

The story is of Death himself deciding to take a short vacation to be among the living, in the hope that he will finally understand why he is so feared and why humans are so reluctant to leave life behind. He takes up residence at the Italian villa of Duke Lamberti and quickly begins to learn about both the large and small things that seem to make life worth living. While Death enjoys discovering the simple charms of life, he also begins to comprehend the strength of human love. As he falls for the Duke's daughter, Grazia, Death soon feels the very emotions that have made humans fear his approach for all of eternity and starts to understand what he has been forcing them to leave behind in life.

So what has made this story so enchanting to audiences for so long? When it first appeared, the play was being shown to an audience that was trying to process the events of the first World War, when death had suddenly and unexpectedly come into so many families and cut short so many young lives. The story helped people to make peace with these very earth-bound woes by emphasizing both the beauty of love in life and the inevitability of death. As Doug Hughes has put it, death is the endpoint of a journey that everyone is on - it is the only truly democratic phenomenon. But must it be feared? As Peter Pan exclaims, "To die will be an awfully big adventure!" And that is the spirit embraced by this production. Everything about it is a combination of beginnings and endings, and it is often hard to tell which is which. It is like those feelings we all have at weddings and at funerals that can be surprising in their similarities. We are all a part of a cycle that does, yes, show us the horrifying solidity of nature. But it also shows us the heights of joy that can be reached if we allow ourselves to love fully and embrace the time that we have.

One of the reasons that the musical works so beautifully is that Maury's score enhances this combined feeling of love and fear in a truly stunning way. His music is lush and romantic, gorgeously allowing each character to share their feelings in songs that truly feel like they are bursting forth from their deepest souls. This music helps to illuminate a story that is both deeply moving and surprisingly life-affirming.

I couldn't be happier to be bringing Death Takes a Holiday to our stage. It is a truly special piece of theatre that taps into the big emotions that so few shows today even attempt to access. But if you allow this story and music to work their magic on you, I can promise you an extremely unique and memorable experience in the theatre. I am eager to hear your thoughts on this production, and I hope you will send your feedback by emailing me at artisticoffice@roundabouttheatre.org or commenting below.

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For more information: http://www.roundabouttheatre.org/offbroadway/deathtakesaholiday/

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