Mario Van Peebles is bringing his pappy back to the Great White Way.
The filmmaker will serve as a creative producer of a Broadway revival of Melvin Van Peebles’ seminal 1971 musical “Ain’t Supposed to Die a Natural Death” set for next year.
Details on casting, additional creatives and venue will be revealed at a later date.
The musical features a book and score by the elder Van Peebles, who in 1971 had another milestone project as the writer, director and star of the trailblazing film “Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song.”
When it opened on Broadway October 1971, “Ain’t Supposed to Die a Natural Death” combined spoken word, funk, jazz and blues in what is now considered a precursor to musicals like “Bring in ‘da Noise, Bring in ‘da Funk” and “Rent.”
“The songs on stage were mirroring the incidents that were happening in the streets,” Melvin Van Peebles said in a statement.
Playing at the Ethyl Barrymore Theatre for nine months, the Gilbert Moses-helmed production featured Bill Duke, Gloria Edwards and Garrett Morris with Phylicia Rashad (then known as Phylicia Allen-Ayers), Ted Lange, Joan Pryor and Roger Robinson as understudies.
Also subtitled “Tunes From Blackness,” the musical scored seven Tony nominations including Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical and Best Original Score.
“Love what you do for a living, love and enjoy the people you do it with, and love what the work says. If you get these three career chakras to line up, you’re rich beyond the economics,” Mario Van Peebles said. “Ain’t Supposed to Die a Natural Death is a perfect example of that artistic alignment.”
“For years, people have said ‘Ain’t Supposed to Die a Natural Death’ was my father’s crowning achievement and ahead of its time and would ask when it would come back to Broadway,” the actor, director and producer added. “Led by the incomparable Mr. Leon, I believe ‘Ain’t Supposed to Die a Natural Death’ is more relevant than ever, and America is finally ready for it.”
Leon, whose latest film – Lifetime’s Mahalia Jackson biopic will air Easter weekend, said he always equated the elder Peebles with “excellence, beauty and courage.”
“I am grateful to have this opportunity along with my creative team to introduce to some, and reintroduce to others, the richness of this unique musical experience.”
