Screenwriter and Harvey Weinstein accuser Louisette Geiss is teaming up with 11-time Oscar-nominated songwriter Diane Warren and Tony-winning theater director and choreographer Susan Stroman to tell her story. Deadline confirms the trio are bringing a filmed version of their #MeToo-themed musical, “The Right Girl,” to a live audience at Barrington Stage Company in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. The venue called the show “the first new American musical before a live, indoor audience since the pandemic began.”
The first time the production will be seen by the public, “The Right Girl” will screen November 1. “Barrington Stage has retrofitted its 520-seat theater with socially distanced seating for 160, improved audience flow by removing every other row, new ventilation, and a filtering system with MERV-13 filters. All the theater air will be purged after each performance, according to theater officials, and masks will be required for all staff and audience members,” Deadline details. “The theater will be sanitized using electrostatic sprayers, disinfectant sprays, and wipes, and a planned talk back session with the creative team following the film will position the speakers at least 12 feet from the audience.”
Geiss wrote the book for “The Right Girl” with Howard Kagan (“Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812”), and they both collaborated with Warren on the lyrics. Stroman directed and choreographed.
Based on Geiss’ experiences, “The Right Girl” follows Eleanor Stark, whose “entire life has been leading up to this moment: her first day as Chief Creative Officer of the legendary movie studio, Ambrosia Productions. As Eleanor rises to the top of her game working side by side for years with the industry’s most respected men, we learn that one of them has been abusing women all along,” per the official synopsis. “What role does she play in the story of Hollywood’s most fiercely guarded secret?”
Alysha Umphress, Jenna Ushkowitz, Robyn Hurder, Merle Dandridge, Polly Baird, and Jessica Bishop are among the musical’s cast.
A former actress, Geiss is one of the dozens of women who has come forward with sexual abuse allegations against Weinstein. She claims that in 2008, the fallen mogul masturbated in front of her at his Sundance Film Festival office, where they had met in order to discuss her screenwriting ambitions. She left the room and her screenwriting career abruptly ended.
“To create this musical over the last two years was cathartic,” Geiss said. “The creative team sat down with more than twenty of my fellow survivors, women who are victims of about a dozen different men in entertainment. Only portions of their stories have been recounted in the press to date, so by presenting these women’s stories in their own words in an entertaining format like musical theater, we hope they resonate with an even bigger audience and empower other survivors to speak out.” She added, “I worked diligently to reclaim my creative spirit again and have audiences see my work. I am particularly grateful to all the women who joined us as contributors and told us their stories, and who will share in the financial success of this show when tickets go on sale.”
Before COVID-19 hit, “The Right Girl” was originally heading for a live run. “Were it not for the pandemic, we planned for this show to premiere at an Off Broadway or regional theater right about now,” Kagan said. “So, when the world changed in March, we changed course to rehearse and film this live theater performance in a way that kept everyone involved safe and socially distanced, while providing all of us a chance to work in the theater industry we love.”
Warren has scored Academy Award nods for songs including “RBG’s” “I’ll Fight” and “Beyond the Light’s” “Grateful.” She has collaborated with the likes of Lady Gaga, Whitney Houston, Cher, Aretha Franklin, Toni Braxton, and Mariah Carey. Next, she’s working with “After” screenwriter Tamara Chestna on a musical drama for Paramount.
Stroman’s stage productions include “The Producers,” “Crazy for You,” “Contact,” and “The Scottsboro Boys.” She has won five Tonys, two Laurence Olivier Awards, and five Drama Desk Awards.
