LIKE WATER FOR CHOCOLATE to be Adapted For the Stage With Music By La Santa Cecilia

Laura Esquivel's 1989 novel, Like Water For Chocolate, will be developed for the stage as a brand new musical.

The musical will be produced by Tom Hulce and Ira Pittleman, and directed by Tony Award winner Michael Mayer. It will feature entirely original music by the Grammy Award-winning Latin group La Santa Cecilia, with lyrics by La Santa Cecilia & Pulitzer Prize winner Quiara Alegría Hudes and a book by Lisa Loomer.

Tonight, as part of the digital concert event ¡Viva Broadway! Hear Our Voices, La Santa Cecilia will premiere a section of never-before-heard music from the musical. To view this exclusive, sneak peek performance, please visit BroadwayCares.org.

La Santa Cecilia is composed of accordionist and requinto player Jose 'Pepe' Carlos, bassist Alex Bendaña, percussionist Miguel 'Oso' Ramirez, and vocalist 'La Marisoul'.

"In times of waiting many wonderful things happen. Dreams take shape and become voices, harmonies, dance," Ms. Esquivel said in a statement. "The musical Like Water for Chocolate waited until a group of extraordinary dreamers came together: La Santa Cecilia and Quiara Alegría Hudes, Lisa Loomer and Michael Mayer, and Tom Hulce and Ira Pittelman, the ideal group to give voice to the culture that runs through our veins and waited years to be seen and heard. My thanks to all of you for dreaming the dream of a dream."

One of the most sensual stories ever told, Like Water For Chocolate centers around an epic battle between familial obligation and romantic desire in turn of the century Mexico, while celebrating the rich land's culture and cuisine like no novel before or since. This feminist fable of tradition, rebellion, and uncontrollable passions has been leaving readers breathless for more than 30 years. The novel has sold millions of copies around the world and has been published in 45 different languages. In 1993, it was adapted into an Award-winning film by the same name, which became the highest-grossing foreign-language film ever released in the United States and Canada at the time. The film earned ten Ariel Awards including the Best Picture and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film.