The Outsiders Musical Sets Opening Date

The cult classic The Outsiders is officially headed to Broadway. On Monday, it was confirmed that a musical adaptation of The Outsiders will begin previews on Saturday, March 16, 2024, at New York’s Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre. The musical will then have its opening night on Thursday, April 11, 2024. Presale tickets will become available to the general public on November 1, 2023. The Outsiders first made its Off-Broadway debut in March of 2023. The production is directed by Danya Taymor, has a book by Adam Rapp with Justin Levine, and music and lyrics from Jamestown Revival (Jonathan Clay and Zach Chance) and Levin. The cast for the Broadway production has yet to be announced.

The Outsiders made headlines earlier this month for the news that actress Angelina Jolie will be the lead producer of the Broadway adaptation. Other producers for the project include The Araca Group, American Zoetrope, Olympus Theatricals, and Sue Gilad & Larry Rogowsky. 

What Is The Outsiders About?

Based on the 1967 book of the same name from S.E. Hinton, The Outsiders is set in Tulsa, Oklahoma 1967. It chronicles the lives of teens Ponyboy Curtis, Johnny Cade and their chosen family of ‘outsiders’ in a tale of the haves and have nots.

The Outsiders was most famously made into a 1983 film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, which starred an ensemble cast including C. Thomas Howell, Ralph Macchio, Matt Dillon, Patrick Swayze, Rob Lowee, Emilio Estevez, Tom Cruise, and Diane Lane. 

Is There a The Outsiders Graphic Novel?

Hinton caught attention in 2020 for arguing that The Outsiders should not be adapted into a graphic novel format, arguing that its prose format is too beneficial in helping create new readers. After receiving pushback from fans and members of the comic community, Hinton revealed she is “reconsidering” the possibility.

“No,” Hinton initially replied. “The Outsiders is the first book many people read in their life & it shows them they CAN read a book. Not that they can turn the pages on a graphic novel.”

Will There Be a The Warriors Musical?

The Outsiders isn’t the only cult-classic title to be headed towards the Broadway stage, with recent reports indicating that Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda will be turning The Warriors into a Broadway musical. The Warriors, based on the 1965 novel from Sol Yurick which was later adapted into a film in 1979, would be Miranda’s first stage musical since Hamilton premiered years ago, and went on to be nominated for and win Tonys, Grammys, and a Pulitzer Prize.

Directed by Walter Hill, The Warriors movie revolved around on a fictitious New York City street gang who must travel 30 miles, from the north end of the Bronx to their home turf in Coney Island in southern Brooklyn, after they are framed for the murder of a respected gang leader. The film starred an ensemble cast including Michael Beck, James Remar, Deborah Van Valkenburgh, Marcelino Sánchez, David Harris, Tom McKitterick, Brian Tyler, Dorsey Wright, Terry Michos, David Patrick Kelly, Roger Hill, Edward Sewer, and Lynne Thigpen. The film subsequently inspired multiple video game and comic adaptations, and was set to be adapted into a television series from Avengers: Endgame directors Joe and Anthony Russo in 2016. 

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