Disney Prepping HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME, FATHER OF THE BRIDE, FREAKY FRIDAY, SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE & More For the Stage!

Last week BroadwayWorld reported that Disney Theatrical Productions has been experimenting with bringing a live stage version of THE MUPPETS to Broadway, but according to the New York Times, that's just one of many pies that they have their fingers in. Many other shows based on animated Disney classics are being created for the stage including THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME (music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, book by Peter Parnell and direction by Scott Schwartz), for which a table reading was recently held. It was announced several years ago that stage adaptations of DUMBO (direction by Stephen Daldry), and Tim Burton's version of ALICE IN WONDERLAND (direction by Rob Ashford) were in the works, though no new information has been released recently on either project.

Other projects include FATHER OF THE BRIDE (music by Joshua Schmidt, lyrics by Michael Korie, book by Donald Margulies and direction by Bartlett Sher) which just held a table reading, and FREAKY FRIDAY (music by Tom Kitt, lyrics by Brian Yorkey, book by Bridget Carpenter, and direction by Christopher Ashley), which is aiming for a future regional run. Disney is also hoping to bring SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE (Tom Stoppard and Lee Hall) to London with producer Sonia Friedman.

Lastly, 2013 Tony nominees Benj Pasek and Justin Paul are working with Rick Elice on a still untitled show based on the 2011 documentary "Make Believe." It is still in early development.

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Disney Theatrical Productions Limited, also known as Disney on Broadway, is the flagship stageplay and musical Production Company of the Disney Theatrical Group, a self-contained division of The Walt Disney Company.

Founded in 1993 as Walt Disney Theatrical, the division has gained a reputation within the industry for creating professional and popular (both critically and financially) performances, starting with the acclaimed Beauty and the Beast in 1994, The Lion King in 1997, Mary Poppins in 2006, and most recently with Newsies in 2012. The company is a division of Disney Theatrical Group, led by Thomas Schumacher.