Prince’s ‘Purple Rain’ Will Be Adapted for the Stage

A stage adaptation of Prince’s film Purple Rain is under development, with a world premiere in the works.

The adaptation will feature a score by Prince, who died in 2016, a book by Pulitzer-Prize finalist Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, whose play Appropriate is currently on Broadway, and direction by Lileana Blain-Cruz, who recently helmed Skin of Our Teeth on Broadway. The book is based on the original screenplay of Purple Rain, written by Albert Magnoli and William Blinn.

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Additional details about the timing and location of the world premiere will be announced at a later date. Orin Wolf (A Band’s Visit) is producing.

The film version of Purple Rain, which was released in 1984 by Warner Bros., starred Prince as The Kid, an emerging rock musician in Minneapolis who is working through a difficult home environment, competing against a rival band and forming a new romance. In addition to the title song, the album of the same name, which was released as the soundtrack to the film, includes “When Doves Cry,” Let’s Go Crazy and “I Would Die 4 U” and sold over 25 million units worldwide.

The movie grossed close to $100 million worldwide and won the Academy Award for best original score. “It’s been almost 40 years since Prince’s legendary film, Purple Rain, took the world by storm and we can’t think of a more fitting tribute than to honor Prince and the Purple Rain legacy with this stage adaptation of the beloved story,” said L. Londell McMillan, chairman of The NorthStar Group, and Larry Mestel, founder and CEO of Primary Wave Music. “We are thrilled with our Broadway partners and creative team, who are bringing a theatricality to the film’s original fictional story. We can’t wait for a new generation to discover Purple Rain and for lovers of the original film and album to experience its power once again, this time live.”

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