By Marie-Louise Gumuchian
LONDON (Reuters) – A musical based on hit novel “The Time Traveller’s Wife” is coming to London’s West End this autumn in a new theatrical adaptation featuring music and lyrics by Grammy Award winners Dave Stewart and Joss Stone.
“The Time Traveller’s Wife: The Musical,” about the relationship between artist Clare and her husband Henry who has a genetic disorder causing him to travel through time, will open at the Apollo Theatre in November after premiering last year in the British city of Chester for a short run.
The musical is based on U.S. author Audrey Niffenegger’s 2003 debut novel, which has previously been turned into a film and television series. U.S. playwright Lauren Gunderson has adapted it for the stage with a focus on Clare’s perspective while dealing with her husband’s absences.
British musician Stewart, co-founder of 1980s pop duo Eurythmics, and singer Stone said they had drawn from their own experiences of being away from loved ones while touring when penning the show’s songs.
“People, as soon as they sit down, they realise it’s not about time-travelling, it’s about every family, it’s about every relationship,” Stewart told reporters at a press launch for the musical on Monday.
“Everything that she’s feeling is because she’s away from the one that she loves … she’s missing him all the time, she’s worried about him all the time,” Stone added.
Stewart, 70, and Stone, 36, have long collaborated together, but writing songs for a musical brought new challenges.
“It’s completely different because every time the script changes that whole scene could be out (and affect the song),” Stewart said.
While Stewart previously worked on a musical adaptation of the film “Ghost,” “The Time Traveller’s Wife” was Stone’s first foray into writing songs for a musical.
“Because it’s a world that I don’t know … it does feel a little bit scarier,” she said.
“It’s nice to be out of your comfort zone.”
(Reporting by Marie-Louise Gumuchian in London; Editing by Matthew Lewis)
