Groundhog Day Musical in the Works

The beloved Bill Murray movie is being adapted by screenwriter Danny Rubin and the team behind the musical 'Matilda'

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Columbia Pictures Corporation

Here’s something that hasn’t already happened: the classic 1993 movie Groundhog Day is on its way to becoming a stage musical.

Tim Minchin, the Australian musician who recently wrote the music and lyrics for the musical of Roald Dahl’s Matilda, has announced on his blog that he’s currently working on doing the same for the Bill Murray/Andie MacDowell film about a weatherman doomed to repeat Feb. 2 until he gets it right. Danny Rubin, who co-wrote the movie, is writing the book; Matilda director Matthew Warchus is set to direct.

Minchin writes that fans of the film should not expect to see the movie merely transposed to the stage:

…it would be impossible to try to translate the style and tone of the movie to stage… and even if it were possible, it wouldn’t interest me. (Or Danny or Matthew, for that matter). Our version of Groundhog Day is going to be both instantly recognizable, and utterly different.

The project is still in early stages, though it’s further along than previous GD-the-musical rumors have gotten (Minchin mentions chatter about a Stephen Sondheim version, but says the legendary composer and lyricist was “only ever tossing the idea around”) and may even be ready for a workshop this summer, which would get it in front of audiences within a few years.

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