Dave Stewart and Joss Stone have co-written original music and lyrics for a stage adaptation of The Time Traveler's Wife, based on Audrey Niffenegger's bestselling novel. The musical is expected to open in the UK by early 2022, pending the reopening of theatres after the pandemic.
Stewart and Stone, who previously collaborated on the SuperHeavy album, created songs for the romance between artist Clare and Henry, whose genetic disorder causes him to involuntarily time travel. The songwriters described the experience as an 'eddy of emotive melodies and heart-wrenching lyrics' fitting the push and pull of the unusual love story.
The musical features additional lyrics by Kait Kerrigan and a book by Lauren Gunderson, America's most produced playwright. Gunderson said she was 'floored by its thunderous emotion and potent humanity' when first reading the novel, and believed the story belonged on stage with music matching its emotional punch.
Directed by Bill Buckhurst, the production is produced by Colin Ingram, who said it will 'lift everyone's spirits as a truly wonderful tonic in a post-pandemic world'. The musical joins a slate of high-profile new shows, including The Drifter's Girl starring Beverley Knight and Get Up, Stand Up – The Bob Marley Musical.
Andrew Lloyd Webber's new musical version of Cinderella at the Gillian Lynne Theatre in London is also scheduled to open in late June, as the industry gears up for a summer reopening following the government's roadmap out of lockdown.
