A cast member from the show last year too me that Beyonce had done everything but sign the contract for this. I'm praying that since so much time has passed, it's no longer the case.
This would be such a great project for Anika Noni Rose though obviously I imagine it's between Beyonce and Jennifer Hudson. We'll see if this happens though, the A STAR IS BORN remake was announced like 4 years ago and it hasn't gotten off the ground yet, MY FAIR LADY spent a similar amount of time in development hell until it just fell apart.
"Some people can thrive and bloom living life in a living room, that's perfect for some people of one hundred and five. But I at least gotta try, when I think of all the sights that I gotta see, all the places I gotta play, all the things that I gotta be at"
I wouldn't expect to see Beyonce do this. Then again it all depends on the time frame but she's pretty busy with this world tour and a new album coming out.
I'm not very familiar with the musical, but isn't the main character supposed to be a soprano? Beyonce can have Aida and A star is born, but I think this needs a stronger actress. Let Audra do this one.
You know durned well that if a Porgy and Bess movie were to come out in this day and age, that role would not be sung by a classical soprano. Studio execs and modern audiences would just not be able to handle that.
Beadle, you're right, Hollywood's never been fond of sopranos anyway. I hate when they lower keys for the screen, and I'm not a big fan of the mezzo trend.
The article clearly states they are trying to make it accessible to contemporary audiences, translation: the first thing that will be gone are any parts of it that make it sound like what mainstream audiences think an "opera" is. I wonder if maybe they'll try to audition other singers, people like Alicia Keys, but I imagine Jennifer Hudson's people will pursue this one hard, her film career needs the boost.
"Some people can thrive and bloom living life in a living room, that's perfect for some people of one hundred and five. But I at least gotta try, when I think of all the sights that I gotta see, all the places I gotta play, all the things that I gotta be at"
Before anyone bitches about the de-opera-ization, let's not forget that this has been done many times- the Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald, the past Terrence McNally production, etc.
The jazz and theatre pedigree on Porgy is almost as strong as its opera one.