It’s the moment everybody (and when I say everybody, I mean me and my old school friends) has been waiting for for the past 19 years. Someone has finally had the good sense to turn this masterpiece of a movie into a full-blown musical. Thank goodness for that, hey?
That’s right: it’s been announced that the world premiere of ‘13 Going On 30 The Musical‘ is coming to London and you can get a sneaky peak later this month – yippee!
The musical has been written by the writers of the hit film of the same name, Josh Goldsmith and Cathy Yuspa, and is being produced by distinguished theatre company, ROYO. They are workshopping the new musical later this month at Battersea Arts Centre.
The workshop will involve four script-in-hand performances between October 25 and October 28, with a live band and brilliant cast. The very best part? The workshop is taking place ahead of a full West End run, which will hopefully be happening in Summer 2025.
The musical is a stage reimagining of the iconic 2004 rom-com starring Jennifer Garner and Mark Ruffalo. It follows the story of Jenna Rink, a thirteen year-old girl desperate to fast-track herself straight to her thirties. But I’m going to assume that if you’re reading this article, you know exactly how the story goes.
Casting is yet to be announced. So hopefully that means I still stand a chance of being involved somehow? No? Okay then.
Josh Goldsmith and Cathy Yuspa, writers of the book and the original screenplay, said: “When we poured our middle school pain into the movie 13 Going on 30, 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. Now we’re thrilled to be bringing our pain across the pond with 13 Going on 30 The Musical. It’s been endlessly fun working with ROYO, Todd Garner, Revolution Studios, composer/lyricists Alan Zachary & Michael Weiner, and director Andy Fickman to reinvent this story for the London stage. We can’t wait for a new generation to grab some Razzles and feel thirty, flirty, and thriving.”
Find out more about the upcoming workshop performances here.