September 29, 2005 11:24
Johnny Cash musical in the works
Ring Of Fire will open on Broadway next year
Johnny Cash is the latest musician to have his back catalogue turned into a stage musical.
Songs by Cash, who died in 2003 aged 71, will be the basis for Ring Of Fire: The Johnny Cash Musical Show, due to to open on Broadway.
But Cash himself will not be portrayed in the show, which will instead take the form of a ‘jukebox musical’ like the ABBA production, Mamma Mia, according to the BBC.
Director Richard Maltby explained the decision: “The persona, the voice, are unduplicatable, and the very best we could achieve would be a poor imitation.”
The show, plans for which were approved by Cash before his death, received rave reviews during a short preview run in Buffalo, New York.
However, Cash will be portrayed by Joaquin Phoenix in the forthcoming big screen adaptation of his life story, Walk The Line.
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