Producer Jack Stein has acquired the Broadway rights to "MerryGoRound," an original musical by Oscar and Grammy Award winners Richard and Robert Sherman with a book by Paul Butler and Fred Fox, Jr. The musical was conceived and will be directed by Andy Belling. The legendary costume designer, Bob Mackie has been set to design the costumes for the production.
"MerryGoRound" is a musical that takes place in the moment between life and death. It's the story of a young man who, believing his existence is meaningless, attempts to end his life. He is saved by his estranged father who persuades him to travel back in his memories via a magic lantern to discover the truth behind various events in his past, to convince him to change his mind and “stay on board” the merry-go-round of life.
The innovative visual look Belling designed for the show will be created by Redesign, Inc. (Peter Morse and Perry “Butch” Allen), the foremost lighting and set designers in contemporary concert tours. "MerryGoRound" contains state-of-the-art video screen projection with live performers interacting with 3-D CGI animation. Additionally the show features breathtaking illusions, never before seen on a Broadway stage, all designed by John Gaughan, who created the magic for David Copperfield and the Broadway musicals, “Beauty and the Beast” and “Merlin".
A workshop was completed in Los Angeles, and plans are now to commence production early next year.
Mark Sendroff (Sendroff & Baruch LLP) has been retained as legal counsel for the production and Manny Kladitis (Niko Companies, LTD) will be the General Manager. The show will be produced under Stein's JNS Entertainment banner.
"The Sherman Brothers are the foremost lyricist-composer team in family entertainment, and they are no strangers to the Broadway theatre, having written “Over Here” (1974) and recently the hugely successful "Chitty, Chitty, Bang, Bang" in London and New York, and "Mary Poppins,” currently one of the hottest tickets on Broadway. "MerryGoRound" will be their third consecutive musical to run on Broadway in the last five years.
"Bob and I, we learned from the master - Walt Disney," Richard says. "He once told us, early on in our career, 'Don't insult the kid - don't write down to the kid. And don't write just for the adult.' So we write for grandpa and the 4-year-old and everyone in between - and all see it on a different level."
They are unquestionably among Hollywood's most popular songwriters ever, having created many of Disney's classic film and theme park songs. They are responsible for the scores for such movie musicals as "Mary Poppins," "101 Dalmatians," "Winnie the Pooh," "The Jungle Book," "The Aristocats" and "Chitty, Chitty, Bang, Bang." They are also the authors of the most-played song on Earth, "It's a Small World (After All)," the tune that plays on a continual, multilingual loop every few minutes at Disney theme parks across the world.
Jack Stein is a former William Morris agent, personal manager, concert promoter and TV producer. Fred Fox, Jr., was a producer and writer of the hit television series "Laverne & Shirley," "Happy Days" and "Family Matters”. He also won an International Emmy for his show, “My Secret Identity,” which he co-created and Executive Produced. Andy Belling, a composer/director, whose music has been heard on television and motion pictures, “The Best of the Ed Sullivan Specials,” “Robert Redford & Sydney Pollock - The Men and Their Movies,” Disney’s international children’s series, “Sing Me A Story,” is best known for his innovative and whimsical score for Ralph Bakshi's cult classic, "Wizards" for 20th Century Fox.