Gossip

Boublil and Schonberg rework Martin Guerre for West End return?

Editorial Staff
London London's West End
Rumours have resurfaced that Boublil and Schonberg musical Martin Guerre could be set for a West End return, following news that the pair’s hit show Miss Saigon is being revived at the Prince Edward Theatre in May 2014.

Iain Glen and Juliette Caton in the original production
Iain Glen and Juliette Caton in the original production

According to The Stage, the composer and lyricist are currently reworking Martin Guerre “with a view to bringing it back to the West End stage next year”.

First presented in the West End at the Prince Edward Theatre in July 1996, directed by Declan Donnellan, the musical initially opened to poor reviews, prompting the writing partnership to drastically revise the material before reopening, after a three-week hiatus, in November 1996 to more favourable notices and a run of more than 700 performances.

It went on to win the 1997 Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical. The show underwent further revisions prior to a UK tour in December 1998, when several new songs were added.

An actor-musician revival was mounted by Craig Revel Horwood at the Watermill Theatre, Newbury in 2007.

Lyricist Boublil told The Stage: “It was a very interesting production at the Watermill. Cameron [Mackintosh] tried [to remount it] but he could not get the people he wanted interested, so we had to forget about that version. This will be a completely new version.”