Dallas Theater Center and Public Theater, With Support of NAMT, to Co-Produce LaChiusa's Giant

By Adam Hetrick
08 Apr 2010

Michael John LaChiusa
Michael John LaChiusa

The Dallas Theater Center will align with the Public Theater to produce Michael John LaChiusa's musical adaptation of Edna Ferber's sprawling Texas-set novel Giant.

Originally presented at the Signature Theatre in Arlington, VA, Giant features a book by Sybille Pearson (Baby) and score by Tony nominee LaChiusa (The Wild Party, Marie Christine, Hello Again). Jonathan Butterell directed the world premiere of the musical that spans nearly a quarter of a century, and clocked in at just under four hours.

The musical will be presented as part of the Dallas Theater Center's 2011-2012 season before an Off-Broadway life, according to a DTC spokesman. The Public has not announced any plans or dates for the epic, three-act work about Texas oil and cattle tycoons.

Giant is being co-produced by DTC and the Public thanks to a full production grant from the National Alliance for Musical Theatre's National Fund for New Musicals. The program aids in the development of new works at various stages of gestation. Dallas Summer Musicals will also fund Giant.

Also announced to receive NAMT full-production grants are the Ford's Theatre production of Liberty Smith, penned by Adam Abraham, Eric R. Cohen, Marc Madnick and Michael Weiner; the Human Race Theatre production of Gregg Coffin's right next to me; and TheatreWorks' A Christmas Memory by Larry Grossman, Carol Hall and Duane Poole.

NAMT workshop and reading grants will be presented to Next Thing You Know by Ryan Cunningham and Joshua Salzman at CAP 21; Love Kills by Kyle Jarrow for the Lark Play Development Center; and the Beth Blatt-Daniel Green musical Oneida at the Village Theatre. An early development grant was awarded to the new musical Through Ellis Island by Dan Chouinard and Peter Rothstein at the Theater Latte Da.

 

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