Ives and Steinman Still Working on Warner Bros.’ Bway Batman | Playbill

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News Ives and Steinman Still Working on Warner Bros.’ Bway Batman Though little has been heard since April 1999, when news came out that Warner Brothers was developing a musical version of “Batman,” playwright David Ives (All in the Timing, Mere Mortals) is continuing to work on the book, and Jim Steinman the score for the new Broadway-bound project.

Though little has been heard since April 1999, when news came out that Warner Brothers was developing a musical version of “Batman,” playwright David Ives (All in the Timing, Mere Mortals) is continuing to work on the book, and Jim Steinman the score for the new Broadway-bound project.

Time Warner, who owns the rights for the caped crusader, had been aiming to place Batman: The Musical on Broadway by early 2001. Now it appears the show won't reach New York until 2002 or 2003. Ives' representative at Writers & Artists told Playbill On-Line (Dec. 22) that a "big big project" such as Batman would likely take "two more years to get on," but there's no current timeframe or specific schedule for development. Ives is also working on a screenplay and another play, but no details are yet available about those projects.

According to Ives - reached at Louisville, KY’s Humana Festival this past April, where his one-act Arabian Night debuted as part of the “Ten Minute Plays” slate - Emanuel Azenberg is also part of the Batman producing team.

Composer Steinman, of Meatloaf's "Bat Out of Hell" fame and lyricist of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Whistle Down the Wind, is writing the score and lyrics.

Insiders claim that Stephen Daldry (Via Dolorosa, An Inspector Calls) passed on the project, with Robin Phillips (Jekyll & Hyde) in negotiations for it, according to an April 1999 Variety report. Should Warner Brothers bring the dark knight to the Great White Way, it will be following in the tracks of several corporate colleagues. Disney has produced three musicals on Broadway — Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King and Aida — and apparently has two more in the works (Pinocchio, The Little Mermaid).

Last decade, Batman and his sidekick Robin were the subject of a series of highly popular "event" movies, such as "Batman and Robin" and "Batman Forever." Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer and George Clooney have all played film versions of the Caped Crusader.

- By David Lefkowitz
and Sean McGrath

 
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