Nine, with music by Maury Yeston and a book by Arthur Kopit, began life in 1982 on Broadway, winning the Best Musical Tony that year. It was also a winner in the Best Score, Best Featured Actress, Best Costume Design, and Best Direction Of A Musical categories. It made a stage star out of its leading man, Raul Julia, who would go on to make films like The Addams Family, The Addams Family Values, and the film adaptation of the popular video game, Streetfighter.
In 2003, the musical was revived starring Antonio Banderas and Jane Krakowski, the Golden Globe winning actress of Ally McBeal fame. The show won best Revival Of A Musical at the Tony Awards that year, and after Banderas left the cast, John Stamos of Full House fame took over the leading role. It was a critical and financial success, and helped it's director, David Leveaux establish himself as a prominent musical theatre director. Leveaux helmed the revival of Fiddler On The Roof starring Harvey Fierstein.
According to Wikipedia.com, Nine is based on a play by Mario Fratti inspired by Fellini's 8 1/2. It focuses on filmmaker Guido Contini, savoring his most recent (and greatest) success but facing his fortieth birthday and a midlife crisis blocking his creative impulses and entangling him in a web of romantic difficulties in early-1960s Venice. Among the women in his life are wife Luisa, producer Liliane La Fleur, mistress Carla, and a young protege Claudia, and his deceased mother.
Rob Marshall, the man behind the revival production of Chicago, will helm the film that will go into production in 2007. Marshall received notice for his most recent film, Memoirs Of A Geisha. He is widely regarded as the man who re-energized the movie musical, as he directed the film version of Chicago, starring Richard Gere, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Queen Latifah, and Renee Zellweger. The film version of Chicago won the Academy Award for Best Film, Best Supporting Actress for Catherine Zeta-Jones, Best Editing, Best Art Direction, Best Sound and Best Costume Design. The film was written by Bill Condon, known for his work recently on the film adaptation of another musical, Dreamgirls starring Academy Award winner Jennifer Hudson, Eddie Murphy, Jamie Foxx, and Beyonce Knowles.
John DeLuca, who choreographed the film adaptation of Chicago with Marshall, will repeat his work on Nine. A screenwriter and cast have not been announced as of yet.
The film will be produced by the Weinstein Company, headed by Harvey Weinstein, who was one of the lead producers of Chicago while he was with another production company, Miramax.
