Jean-Michel Basquiat died 30 years ago, but the iconic New York City artist is set to live again in the form of a Basquiat musical that is being developed for Broadway.
Based on the life and art of the artist, who died from a heroin overdose at age 27, the Basquiat musical will feature music and lyrics by Jon Batiste with Tony Award-winning director John Doyle at the helm.
The development team behind the Basquiat musical is working closely with his estate and have secured the rights to his artwork and personal archives.
While Basquiat’s younger sisters Lisane and Jeanine Basquiat said they were approached several times over the years to bring their brother’s story to the stage, talking to producers Alan and Barbara Marks piqued their interest.
“We understood that their approach to telling our brother’s story treats his life, his art and his legacy with respect and passion,” they said in a joint statement. “We are thrilled with the possibilities. We cannot wait to begin the developmental process. Broadway is a new world for us, and we looking forward to sharing our brother’s life and art.”
Basquiat musical aims to inspire viewers to create
Jon Batiste, composer for the Basquiat musical, hopes the audience will “leave this show inspired to create.”
“I want them to not only learn about Jean-Michel Basquiat, an innovator, but to also feel the visceral thrill of the creative process and to deepen and discover their own creativity,” he added. “We have an opportunity to tell a truly profound story, full of emotional highs and lows, with unbelievable art at the center.”
Additional creative team members and the production schedule for the Basquiat musical will be announced later, the developers said.
Jean-Michel Basquiat was born Dec. 22, 1960, in Brooklyn and died Aug. 12, 1988, at his art studio at 57 Great Jones Street in Manhattan. He is buried in Brooklyn’s Green-Wood Cemetery.
