It feels like a lot of movies and shows have been headed down the stage adaptation route in recent weeks (and months) – we've got the Stranger Things prequel play opening in a couple of months, and both Paranormal Activity and Minority Report looking tread the boards. Add to the list a musical version of 13 Going On 30.
The 2004 comedy starred Jennifer Garner as Jenna Rink, a 13-year-old girl who fantasizes about skipping the awkward teenage stage and simply waking up at the age of 30 with a fabulous life, apartment and career.
When she blows out the candles on her 13th birthday cake, that’s precisely what she wishes for — only to wake up the following morning and find out her wish has actually come true.
Josh Goldsmith and Cathy Yuspa wrote the movie and are back for the musical, which will feature music and lyrics by with music and lyrics by High School Musical: The Musical: The Series duo Michael Weiner and Alan Zachary. Andy Fickman, best known as a filmmaker for the likes of Playing With Fire and Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2, but with stage experience thanks to his work on Heathers: The Musical, will direct.
And as with some of the other productions listed above, the musical will get its start in London, with the writers holding a two-week workshop at the Battersea Arts Centre next month and, in a rare move, four performances (October 25-28) will be open to the public.
"When we poured our middle school pain into the movie, we never quite imagined it would stick around to this day as a rom-com parents show their kids, a Halloween costume, a scene in an Ariana Grande music video, and a teen sleepover staple,” Goldsmith and Yuspa told Variety "Now we’re thrilled to be bringing our pain across the pond with 13 Going On 30 The Musical."
Will it end up going the traditional route of movie-to-musical-to-movie-musical (witness The Color Purple, due in cinemas this coming January).