Broadway-Aimed Super Fly Musical Will Have August-September Workshop

By Andrew Gans
and Adam Hetrick
21 Jun 2012

Bill T. Jones
Bill T. Jones
Photo by Joseph Marzullo/WENN

Two-time Tony Award-winning Fela! creator and Spring Awakening choreographer Bill T. Jones is preparing for a Aug. 6-Sept. 14 developmental workshop of  Super Fly, according to an Equity casting notice.

Music mogul Tommy Mottola and The Mottola Group have partnered with the Dodgers (Jersey Boys, Titanic, Jelly's Last Jam) for the workshop of the soul-funk musical. Casting is by Mungioli Theatricals, Inc., which also cast Fela!

Earlier workshops took place in October 2011 and March-April 2012.

Jones will direct and choreograph Super Fly, which has a book by Seth Zvi Rosenfeld (Handball, A Brother's Kiss, The Writing on the Wall). Ron Melrose will serve as musical director.

Super Fly uses the songs of Curtis Mayfield, who earned acclaim for the soundtrack to the 1972 film of the same title, for its score. It also incorporates other songs from the 1970's R&B, soul, funk and pop era, according to the casting notice.

Jones first revealed his plans to turn the smash, 1972 blaxploitation film "Super Fly" into a stage musical at the 2010 Tony Awards, when he earned the Tony for Best Choreography for Fela! 

"Super Fly" takes a gritty, yet over-the-top look at the world of drug dealers in 1970's New York City.

Actors are being sought for the roles of Priest, Georgia, Eddie, Fat-Freddy, Scatter and Riordan. The casting notice also states, "Producer expects a Broadway production in the future."