Mrs. Doubtfire -The Musical Seattle Pre-Broadway Run!!

[brdwybound04]

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Jerry-Zaks-To-Direct-Pre-Broadway-MRS-DOUBTFIRE-at-Seattles-5th-Avenue-Theatre-This-Fall-20190606


Soooooo excited for this!!!!!

[Theatrefanboy1]

I’d imagine this coming to New York for April 2020

[Kad]

I'm glad we'll finally get a musical about a man who misleads others for his own gain by pretending he is a woman. 

[magictodo123]

Kad said: "I'm glad we'll finally get a musical about a man who misleads others for his own gain by pretending he is a woman."

And isn’t it...CREEPY that he dresses as a woman to get close to his kids?? I find it interesting how there was such an uprising about another musical about a man dressing as woman but this is okay 

[n2nbaby]

Look, I am not sure how this musical will end up being but if it follows the movie (which I’m sure it will), it is not “creepy” that he is dressing as a woman to see his children. He is helpless, lonely and sad and will do anything to see his children.

[getupngo]

I just hope the line about “are your kids well behaved or do they need like a few light slams” makes it into the show

[ACL2006]

Any reports on who is playing Mrs. Doubtfire?

[juliacd]

ACL2006 said: "Any reports on who is playing Mrs. Doubtfire?"

in the lab it was Rob McClure with Kate Baldwin and Mario Cantone

[Mike Barrett]

I believe Rob Mclure was doing the reading. He seems good to be honest. And there isn’t anything creepy about a parent wanting to see their kids one more time, don’t be so sensitive lol.

[Clyde15]

I gotta say this announcement confuses me a bit. The 5th Ave announced Shrek the musical as their Holiday show months ago, held auditions and callbacks back in April I believe, and then this show was announced. The 5th Ave still hasn’t confirmed that Mrs. Doubtfire will be playing there and they already have two other new musicals in their season. I wonder why such a sudden change in line up?

[SomethingPeculiar]

"Pooooooor Winston...it was the drink that killed him."

"Oh, he was an alcoholic?"

"No, he got run over by a Guinness truck."

 

I'm so excited for this musical, but I'm also scared. There's so much iconic stuff in that role, and though I love Rob McClure, I fear that he's always going to have Robin's shadow (and also Santino Fontana's shadow) looming over him.

I also think the source material is inherently less problematic than Tootsie, but the star characterization is more iconic.

[Joviedamian]

I wish Brian D'Arcy James was leading this...why I picture him in my head to be a riot in the role.

[darquegk]

I wonder how many of the iconic lines and bits will be legally allowed to be included? I believe Robin Williams had pretty tight stipulations in his contracts about what they were and weren't allowed to use of his material in films where he improvised heavily.

[Hot Pants]

I’m a bit upset to hear that several posters believe the concept of Mrs. Doubtfire to be creepy. I’ve always found Robin Williams to be extremely sympathetic in the movie. The only reason he dresses up as a woman is because of how much he loves his kids.

[GeorgeandDot]

The leading man won't stand a chance in Williams' shoes. He's untouchable.

[MollyJeanneMusic]

Any chance this could open by the end of the 19-20 season?  It would be nice to actually have an original score this season.

[magictodo123]

You can have your opinion, and I can think that it is creepy. He dressed in drag, lied to his kids about who he was, also takes over a job on a TV show and continues to dress in drag on that TV show...totally not creepy. I can have an opinion lol that's what these boards are for.

[n2nbaby]

magictodo123 said: "You can have your opinion, and I can think that it is creepy. He dressed in drag, lied to his kids about who he was, also takes over a job on a TV show and continues to dress in drag on that TV show...totally not creepy. I can have an opinion lol that's what these boards are for."

What is “creepy” about him playing a character on a TV show who happens to be of the opposite sex of him, so he dresses in drag?

[JSquared2]

magictodo123 said: "You can have your opinion, and I can think that it is creepy. He dressed in drag, lied to his kids about who he was, also takes over a job on a TV show and continues to dress in drag on that TV show...totally not creepy. I can have an opinion lol that's what these boards are for."

 

Sure -- everyone is entitled to ridiculous opinions.  

[SomethingPeculiar]

MollyJeanneMusic said: "Any chance this could open by the end of the 19-20 season? It would be nice to actually have an original score this season."

Unless it goes badly in Seattle and needs major rewrites, Spring 2020 seems likely. Though that's a quick turnaround (5th Ave runs November 26-December 29).

One thing that could impact it opening next spring: Kevin McCollum is also producing SIX. He might not want to pit two of his shows against each other. Plenty of other lead producers have had multiple shows in the same season, but it rarely happens with new musicals.

However, waiting til the 20-21 season also appears to have obstacles: Jerry Zaks has MUSIC MAN starting previews Sept. 9, 2020 (with rehearsals beginning in July), and Mr. Rudin sometimes restricts people from working on multiple shows in the same season. Of course, Zaks did Bronx Tale and Dolly in the same season, but a Spring 2021 opening would be a good 15 months after the out-of-town tryout for Doubtfire.

[RWPrincess]

Buena Vista Theatrical is another name for Disney Theatrical. So looks like Disney is involved without putting the Disney name on this. They've done similar in the past with Peter and the Starcatcher, etc. 

The biggest question will be whether both this and Tootsie can be successful at the same time. I think having kids in this one will help target this more to families and younger crowds which hopefully can help differentiate it enough from Tootsie.

This is one of my favorite movies so I'm excited to see this come to fruition on stage.

 

[BritCrit]

Kad said: "I'm glad we'll finally get a musical about a man who misleads others for his own gain by pretending he is a woman."

The long development periods in musical theatre mean that Mrs. Doubtfire has been preparing for Broadway for a while, but it will premiere on stage just 13 months after Tootsie had its Chicago tryout, and the competition between the two could be a liability (Tootsie has just released tickets to April 2020, so the two could possibly be on Broadway at the same time). The original films were released 11 years apart, giving Mrs. Doubtfire enough time to gain its own unique identity in spite of the core similarities between the two. However, when they are premiering in consecutive seasons, it will be too easy for Mrs Doubtfire to seem derivative...

[BritCrit]

RWPrincess said: "Buena Vista Theatrical is another name for Disney Theatrical. So looks like Disney is involved without putting the Disney name on this. They've done similar in the past with Peter and the Starcatcher, etc.

The biggest question will be whether both this and Tootsie can be successful at the same time. I think having kids in this one will help target this more to families and younger crowds which hopefully can help differentiate it enough from Tootsie.

This is one of my favorite movies so I'm excited to see this come to fruition on stage.

"

Mrs Doubtfire is based on a set of children's novels (from a female author!) so if they take inspiration from those, it could allow them to step out of Robin's shadow. Being more child-friendly than Tootsie could help a bit, (The recent closure of School of Rock, SpongeBob and Anastasia means that there is space for a new family-friendly musical) but having a similar premise (and similar problems) could turn off the critics and casual theatregoers...

[RWPrincess]

BritCrit said: "RWPrincess said: "Buena Vista Theatrical is another name for Disney Theatrical. So looks like Disney is involved without putting the Disney name on this. They've done similar in the past with Peter and the Starcatcher, etc.

The biggest question will be whether both this and Tootsie can be successful at the same time. I think having kids in this one will help target this more to families and younger crowds which hopefully can help differentiate it enough from Tootsie.

This is one of my favorite movies so I'm excited to see this come to fruition on stage.

"

Mrs Doubtfire is based on a set of children's novels (from a female author!) so if they take inspiration from those, it could allow them to step out of Robin's shadow. Being more child-friendly than Tootsie could help a bit, (The recent closure of School of Rock, SpongeBob and Anastasia means that there is space for a new family-friendly musical) but having a similar premise (and similar problems) could turn off the critics and casual theatregoers..."

It will be interesting to watch the dynamic for sure. I'm not as concerned about Robin's shadow because I think the right casting for Daniel can take care of that. Plus his shadow hasn't impacted Aladdin's success.

 

[SomethingPeculiar]

RWPrincess said: "Buena Vista Theatrical is another name for Disney Theatrical. So looks like Disney is involved without putting the Disney name on this. They've done similar in the past with Peter and the Starcatcher, etc."


I think we'll see the Buena Vista billing for FOX stage properties. Fox was the studio behind the Mrs. D movie and Fox Stage Productions was previously partnered with McCollum on this, but Fox Stage chair Bob Cohen got the boot after the Disney merger. It makes sense that the company's theatrical efforts are now under Schumacher's umbrella (albeit with a different name).

Not to be nit-picky, but Starcatcher was billed as Disney Theatrical Productions, but Dis wasn't the lead producer so it wasn't prominent. When AIDA opened, the producer was listed as "Hyperion Theatricals," in a plan to launch a new theatre division within Disney, but they later scratched that and re-branded as Disney Theatrical Prods.