Kitt, Miranda, Whitty and Green to Collaborate on Bring It On: The Musical

A starry foursome has signed on to create Bring It On: The Musical, a stage adaptation of the 2000 hit feature film set in the world of competitive cheerleading. The show, which is hoping for a regional production in 2011 followed by a national tour, will feature a book by Jeff Whitty (Avenue Q) and lyrics by Amanda Green (High Fidelity) with Lin-Manuel Miranda (In the Heights) and Tom Kitt (Next to Normal) collaborating on the music. Andy Blankenbuehler (In The Heights) will direct and choreograph.

A statement by Blankenbuehler suggests that Whitty’s book enticed the other creative team members to come on board: “The explosive world of cheerleading heightens so naturally to the stage,” the Tony-winning director said. “Jeff Whitty has come up with an enticing, original book, and Lin-Manuel Miranda and Tom Kitt, two of Broadway’s most talented composers, are joining their amazing creative forces to write the score. With Amanda Green collaborating on lyrics and musical supervision [and orchestrations] by Alex Lacamoire [In the Heights], this team is a director and choreographer’s dream.”

The press announcement says that Bring It On: The Musical “will feature all new and original characters.” The 2000 film, starring Kirsten Dunst, Eliza Dushku, Jesse Bradford and Gabrielle Union, centered on a champion cheerleading squad from San Diego whose supremacy is threatened by an upstart hip-hop squad from East Compton.

Bring It On: The Musical will be produced by Universal Pictures Stage Productions along with Charlie Lyons and Armyan Bernstein of Beacon Communications.