Rocky Makes its Broadway Debut as Part of The Broadway Collection
Stage Entertainment USA and Sylvester Stallone present Rocky, the new musical adaptation of the Academy Award winning film, to make its Broadway debut at the historic Winter Garden Theater. Rocky will began previews on February 11, 2014 and will officially open on March 13, 2014. Rocky made its world premier in fall 2012 in Hamburg, Germany, where it earned unanimous critical raves and continues to play to packed houses.
Rocky brings to life the iconic and inspiring story of struggling small time Philly boxer, Rocky Balboa, who gets a once-in-a-lifetime shot to go the distance against heavyweight champ Apollo Creed. Both an adrenalin-infused spectacle and a surprising story of blossoming romance between two lonely outsiders, Rocky is a heart-stopping and viscerally theatrical new musical for everyone brave enough to follow their dream.
Produced on a shoestring budget, the original 1975 film, Rocky, was shot in 28 days, and starred its young and then-unknown screenwriter, Sylvester Stallone. Like the character of boxer Rocky Balboa, Stallone had to fight the studio, which wanted more bankable stars to be cast in the role. Stallone’s performance earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor and launched his career as one of Hollywood’s biggest stars. The small underdog film went on to become an American film classic, winning the 1976 Academy Award for Best Picture, and launched one of the most successful and iconic characters in Hollywood history.
The production is directed by Alex Timbers, whose critically-acclaimed work on Bloody, Bloody Andrew Jackson and Peter and the Starcatcher garnered Mr. Timbers Tony Award nominations for both. Rocky features an original score by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens, the celebrated Tony Award-winning and Academy Award-nominated songwriters behind Ragtime, Once on This Island, and Anastasia, and a book by multiple Tony Award-winner Thomas Meehan (The Producers, Hairspray, Annie) and Sylvester Stallone, who was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for the 1976 Oscar-winning Best Picture.