August 22, 2012

Publication title: wsj.com, vol. -, Iss. -, pg. –
Place: Unknown
Writer: Kirk Baird

Sarah McLachlan Writing Song for ‘King Kong’ Musical

If you see Grammy-winning singer Sarah McLachlan climbing the Empire State Building, she may just be looking for inspiration.

McLachlan posted this note on Facebook earlier today: “I am writing a song for the new King Kong musical that debuts jan 2013 xoS”

Global Creatures, an Australia-based entertainment company, plans to bring “King Kong” to New York by 2013. McLachlan didn’t make clear on Facebook if this was the show she was working on, but if there were two competing King Kong musicals that would be pretty crazy. Then again, that’s happened with asteroid/comet-heading-to-Earth movies.

According to the website for the coming show, “The production, which will be staged at Melbourne’s Regent Theatre (its only season in Australia before embarking on an international tour), will feature a cast of 40 actors, singers, dancers and puppeteers who will bring to life the two opposing worlds of the story – 1930s New York City and Skull Island, the home of Kong.” The show’s Twitter page says it will open June 2013 in Melbourne.

Global Creatures also worked on the stage shows “Walking With Dinosaurs” and “How To Train Your Dragon.” According to the show’s website, the “King Kong” production will be “helmed by American theatre and opera director Daniel Kramer, with a book by Craig Lucas.” The company has been working on the show for some time. Back when Speakeasy first covered the production in 201o, Global Creatures already had been laboring on it for two-and-a-half years. A representative for the company said then that it planned to use an updated version of the animatronics it used on “Walking with Dinosaurs” to bring “King Kong” to life. Presumably, that takes time, and maybe a Sarah McLachlan song to make it all go down easy.