YENTL to be Made into One-Woman Musical

Thirty years after it came out, the movie Yentl, which was directed, co-written, and co-produced by Barbra Streisand who also played the main character, will be made into a Dutch musical starring just one actress: Vera Mann. The one-woman musical will premiere in October and tour the Netherlands until January 2014.

Yentl was previously seen on stage in 1975 as a Broadway play by Leah Napolin and Isaac Bashevis Singer, based on Singer's short story "Yentl the Yeshiva Boy". Now, German author and director Heiko Stang has created a theatrical monologue based on the story. Stang will also direct the new musical.

The well-known 1983 movie adaptation focuses on an Ashkenazi Jewish girl in Poland who decides to dress and live like a man so that she can receive an education in Talmudic Law after her father dies. The film's musical score and songs, composed by Michel Legrand, include the songs "Papa, Can You Hear Me?" and "The Way He Makes Me Feel", both sung by Streisand. The film received the Academy Award for Best Original Score and the Golden Globe Awards for Best Motion Picture-comedy and Best Director for Streisand.

Vera Mann recently stated, "La Streisand taught me to sing. It's very special to me that at the age of 50 I get to play one of her most famous roles. It appears as if the circle is complete".

Mann previously played Lady Di in another one-woman musical, recounting the tragic life of Diana Spencer. For this role she was awarded the first of her three Dutch Musical Awards for Best Actress in Leading Role. Other roles played by Mann in The Netherlands and Belgium include Evita (EVITA), Eliza Doolittle (MY FAIR LADY), Donna (MAMMA MIA), Grizabella (CATS) and Fosca (PASSION).

The upcoming musical starring Mann will incorporate the music by Legrand. The premiere will take place in Haarlem on October 10th. The tour is presented by the new Rotterdam-based Blue Sky Productions.

Below the current teaser for the production: