You oughta know: Alanis Morissette is developing her 1995 album “Jagged Little Pill” for the stage, with a targeted timeline that would see a workshop production of the piece bow in 2014.
Tom Kitt, the Pulitzer-winning composer (“Next to Normal”), is on tap to provide orchestrations and arrangements for Morissette’s rock tunes, just as he did for the Broadway incarnation of Green Day album “American Idiot.” Any workshop production will likely have to wait, however, until after the premiere of Kitt’s latest original work with “Normal” partner Brian Yorkey, “If/Then,” which recently kicked off a tryout run in D.C. prior to a Broadway bow this spring.
The song list of “Jagged Little Pill,” which Morissette co-wrote with Glen Ballard and includes hits “You Oughta Know” and “Ironic,” will be filled out with other tunes from her career as well as original songs penned for the stage production. Music will also be fleshed out with a storyline, although no book writer has been set for the project.
Vivek J. Tiwary (“American Idiot,” “The Addams Family”) produces with British-Malaysian producer Arvind Ethan David.
Morissette marks the latest pop-rock musician to explore Broadway. Green Day did it with “American Idiot,” while Cyndi Lauper penned the original music for Tony champ “Kinky Boots.” This year, the New York theater season includes new musicals featuring the work of Carole King (“Beautiful,” opening on Broadway in January) and Burt Bacharach (“What’s It All About?” at Off Broadway’s New York Theater Workshop).
