By Andrew Gans
23 Jun 2010

Gunnar Madsen
Photo by Tom Erikson

Playwrights Horizons and New York Theatre Workshop will co-produce The Shaggs: The Philosophy of the World next year.

Directed by John Langs, the co-production by the two non-profit theatres will be presented at Playwrights Horizons in spring 2011.

The Shaggs: The Philosophy of the World features a book by Joy Gregory; music by Gunnar Madsen; lyrics by Gregory and Madsen; and a story by Gregory, Madsen and Langs.

"Set in Fremont, New Hampshire in the early '70s," the new musical, according to the two theatre companies, is based on "the true story of a working class dad who has a vision of rock n' roll destiny for his three talentless daughters, convinced they're his family's one-way ticket out of hardship and obscurity. But the girls have ideas of their own – and as their father's ambition turns to obsession, the price of familial obligation becomes all too clear."

With The Shaggs, Playwrights Horizons and New York Theatre Workshop continue their commitment to developing new musicals. At Playwrights Horizons, these include Grey Gardens, James Joyce's The Dead, Floyd Collins, Assassins, Once on This Island and Sunday in the Park with George, and at New York Theatre Workshop these include Rent; The Seven; Bright Lights, Big City; and Songs From an Unmade Bed.

This production will mark the first time the two award-winning theatres have co-produced together.

Visit www.playwrightshorizons.org or www.nytw.org.