English nerds and Leonardo DiCaprio fans everywhere rejoiced when F. Scott Fitzgerald’s best-known work, The Great Gatsby, entered the public domain at the start of this year. Now free from the constraints of copyright, the American classic is being brought to the stage with help from Florence + The Machine’s Florence Welch.
The indie darling is slated to provide lyrics for the new musical, with music composed by both Welch and Thomas Bartlett, who has previously worked with Florence + The Machine on “Jenny of Oldstones” for Game of Thrones. His prolific career as a pianist and producer also includes credits on the Call Me By Your Name soundtrack for his collaborations with Sufjan Stevens under the moniker Doveman, and as the synth player on Taylor Swift’s folklore. The Great Gatsby, A New Musical also features a book by Martyna Majok, whose previous play Cost of Living earned her a Pulitzer Prize. The show will be directed by Olivier Award nominee Rebecca Frecknall.
Welch spoke of working on the new musical in a statement:
This book has haunted me for a large part of my life. It contains some of my favourite lines in literature. Musicals were my first love, and I feel a deep connection to Fitzgerald’s broken romanticism. It is an honour to have been offered the chance to recreate this book in song.
Currently, no details have been revealed regarding the timeline of the musical’s release. In the meantime, you can revisit Bartlett’s 2006 Doveman Daytrotter session below.
