Steven Van Zandt, best known for playing in Bruce Springsteen's E-Street Band and appearing on The Sopranos, has formed a new producing entity, Renegade Theater, with his wife, Maureen Van Zandt, and commercial producers Nina Keneally and Jamie Lightstone. The company will be dedicated to producing all-star limited Broadway engagements of classic American plays, according to Variety.
Renegade Theater's goal is to present works by authors including Tennessee Williams, Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller in engagements that will last eight to 12 weeks. The plan is to get big stars to do these shows, each capitalized at around $1.5 million, and then film them. Maureen Van Zandt will be the artistic director of Renegade Theater.
Renegade's plan is somewhat similar to the one announced by Broadway Tonight in 2001. That company wanted to mount starry limited run productions on the Great White Way and then air them as part of a subscription television series. Broadway Tonight said it would produce four Broadway shows a year in this manner. Although this was expected to launch during the 2002-2003 season, it never came to be.
