Amy Winehouse Musical in Development for the West End
An Amy Winehouse musical is in early development for London's West End, with Tony award-winning producer Catherine Schreiber attached and casting reported to be under way, according to Variety.
Amy Winehouse Musical in Development for the West End
Early stages with an award-winning producer
A musical based on Amy Winehouse is being developed for London's West End, and the project is still at an early stage. Catherine Schreiber, a Tony award-winning producer whose credits include Cabaret and Rent, is attached to the show, according to Variety. Casting is reported to currently be under way.
Family involvement and the songs
Mitch Winehouse, the late singer's father, is said to be involved with the production, which suggests her most loved songs will probably feature in it. He spoke about the idea back in 2017, saying he was happy for such a show to go ahead.
In that interview, he said: "A musical celebrating her life and music is being talked about for the near future". He added that the show was intended for the West End and set out what he wanted it to achieve.
"We want to do something that remembers Amy for what she was; there's so much more to her than just the drugs and the alcohol."
A busy season for her legacy
The show would join a crowded run of posthumous Winehouse projects since her death in 2011, aged 27. This week alone:
- The 20th anniversary of Back to Black was marked with an amy winehouse tribute concert at London's Roundhouse, featuring Jorja Smith, Mark Ronson, Lianne La Havas and Corinne Bailey Rae.
- An expanded Back to Black reissue arrives on 23 October, adding four unreleased demos, B-sides and a live album recorded at Amsterdam's Paradiso in 2007.
- In Chelsea, an exhibition by artist Alex Margo Arden gathers Winehouse ephemera in an apartment, among it ballet flats and an unopened birthday card from Ronson and Adele.
How past tributes have fared
Earlier tributes have drawn mixed responses. Asif Kapadia's 2015 documentary won the best documentary Oscar, but the 2011 rarities collection Lioness was received as a "flawed memorial for a flawed star", and Sam Taylor-Johnson's 2024 biopic was slammed as a "grotesque insult" by the Guardian's Laura Snapes. Guardian critic Dorian Lynskey has also cautioned that "re-enactments can be limiting".
The musical remains in its early stages, with casting reported to be under way; Amy Winehouse's record label has been approached for comment.
