MTI announced April 12 that it had acquired the rights to the 90-minute musical by Alex Timbers and Michael Friedman, which skewers American history while taking a dark, comic look at the life of the seventh president of the United States.
MTI expects to see the first regional productions of Bloody Bloody arrive in spring 2012, with a possibility for mountings as early as this fall.
"Including Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson in our arsenal of ground breaking musical theatre pieces just makes sense. The prospect of allowing theatre companies around the globe to push the envelope with this ultramodern musical is very exciting," said MTI president Drew Cohen in a statement.
Equal parts sketch comedy, underground rock concert and a revisionist history lesson, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson has a book by Timbers of Les Freres Corbusier and music and lyrics by The Civilians' Friedman.
Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson arrived on Broadway in September 2010 following a 2008 world premiere at the Center Theatre Group and a run at the Public Theater in the spring of 2010 that was extended three times. Bloody Bloody earned a place as the second highest-grossing production in Public Theater history. The record holder is the Tony Award-nominated musical Caroline, or Change, also an MTI title. Here's how the work is officially billed: "Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson explores the title character’s life through the unconventional means of irreverently emotional, punk rock music. Audiences cling to the edge of their seats as Andrew Jackson kicks British butt, shafts the Indians and smacks down the Spaniards all in the name of these United States -- who cares if he doesn’t have permission? An exhilarating and white-knuckled look at one of our nation’s founding rock stars, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson recreates and reinvents the life of 'Old Hickory,' from his humble beginnings on the Tennessee frontier to his days as our seventh Commander-in-Chief."
Visit MTIShows.com to enquire about licensing rights.
Sh-K-Boom/Ghostlight Records recorded the cast album of the musical, which can be ordered here.
Here are Playbill's highlights from the original Broadway production: Highlights from Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson:
