Shirley Henderson starred in "Girl From the North Country" in London. /Manuel Harlan
Things didn't go so well the last time Bob Dylan's music fueled a Broadway show -- "The Times They Are a-Changin'" only ran for a month in 2006. Maybe the second time's a charm?
No Broadway plans have been announced yet but "Girl From the North Country," a huge and acclaimed hit on London's West End, has been announced for its U.S. premiere at the Public Theater in New York. It'll be there to kick off the Public's 2018-19 season in September and it's already rumored that it will follow other Public musicals "Hamilton," "Fun Home" and "A Chorus Line" to Broadway.
Essentially, "Girl From the North Country" is a jukebox musical, although one with a story like "Mamma Mia," as opposed to one that tells the life of its composer, such as "Beautiful." The musical uses Dylan songs such as "Like a Rolling Stone" and "Forever Young" to weave an atmospheric tale set in "Dylan's home town, Duluth" (Hibbing residents, direct your letters to the Public). With a script by "The Weir" playwright Conor McPherson, the show assembles a disparate group of characters for a drab, boarding house Thanksgiving in 1934.
The Public's season also includes new plays starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Glenn Close.
