Paper Mill Playhouse to host musical 'Bodyguard' with Whitney Houston songs
Stage show to feature hits from entire Whitney Houston career
The musical legacy of the late Whitney Houston is returning to New Jersey, where Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn will host the U.S. premiere of the musical stage adaptation of her smash-hit movie "The Bodyguard."
"The Bodyguard," which will run from Nov. 25 through Jan. 1 before embarking on a national tour, features classic Houston-sung hits sung from all phases of her chart-topping discography.
In addition to "Bodyguard" soundtrack songs such as "I Will Always Love You," the score features memorable tunes like “So Emotional,” “One Moment in Time,” “Saving All My Love,” “Run to You,” “I Have Nothing” and “I Wanna Dance with Somebody.”
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Based on the Oscar-nominated film starring the former Mendham Township resident and Kevin Costner, adapted by Academy Award-winning screenwriter Alexander Dinelaris ("Birdman"), "The Bodyguard" is part of the theater's recently announced 2016-17 season, which opens with a revival of the the musical comedy "The Producers" and also includes "A Comedy of Tenors," "Million-Dollar Quartet" and "Mary Poppins."
“Paper Mill Playhouse continues its legacy of bringing the finest musical theater to the audiences of New Jersey and beyond,” said Mark S. Hoebee, producing artistic director for the Millburn theater that has become a launching point for new Broadway shows such as "Newsies" and "Honeymoon in Vegas." “Each time Paper Mill Playhouse has produced a show that has a life beyond our theater, it brings great pride to the people of our state. Paper Mill Playhouse is a leading exporter of art in New Jersey, and we are ecstatic to continue that tradition.”
Houston and her future husband, singer Bobby Brown, bought a 12,500-square-foot custom contemporary home on 5 fenced-and-gated acres for $1.5 million in Mendham Township and hosted their lavish 1992 wedding there.
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Later, as their marriage and careers wavered, the home was featured in several episodes of the Bravo reality TV series "Being Bobby Brown." Houston, a native of East Orange, died on Feb. 11, 2012 in Los Angeles. An autopsy attributed her death at the Beverly Hilton to drowning in a bathtub, with atherosclerotic heart disease and cocaine use significantly contributing to her death.
The troubled couple legally separated in 2006 and divorced in 2007.
The new musical does not mention Houston's name.
Grammy Award nominee Deborah Cox, who sang Houston's vocal parts in the 2015 Lifetime cable channel biographical film "Whitney," will star at Paper Mill in Houston's film role of singer Rachel Marron, who hires former Secret Service agent-turned bodyguard Frank Farmer (played by Costner in the film) to protect her from an unknown stalker.
The stage adaptation of "The Bodyguard" had its world premiere in 2013 on London's West End, where it earned four Olivier award nominations.
Staff Writer William Westhoven: 973-917-9242; wwesthoven@GannettNJ.com.
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