Twenty-five years after first bringing Broadway audiences to their feet, the Tony Award-winning musical sensation DREAMGIRLS comes to the big screen, under the direction of Bill Condon. “I was actually in the audience on opening night, and it was one of those experiences you never forget,” Condon states. “The original Broadway production of DREAMGIRLS was thrilling, with a brilliant cast and legendary staging by Michael Bennett. With the passage of time, I think it’s possible to take a fresh look at this material. The story of the crossover success of African American music during the 1960’s has a particular relevance today, when black culture almost defines the mainstream.”
DREAMGIRLS brings together an ensemble of award-winning stars from the worlds of film, Broadway, television, and the recording industry, including Academy Award® winner Jamie Foxx (“Ray”), recording superstar and actress Beyoncé Knowles (“The Pink Panther”) and box office favorite Eddie Murphy (“The Nutty Professor,” “Dr. Dolittle”). The film also introduces “American Idol” finalist Jennifer Hudson, making her feature film debut. Rounding out the main cast are veteran actor Danny Glover (“Lethal Weapon”), Tony Award winner Anika Noni Rose (Broadway’s “Caroline, or Change”), Keith Robinson (“Fat Albert”), Sharon Leal (TV’s “Boston Public”), and three-time Tony Award winner Hinton Battle (“Miss Saigon,” “The Tap Dance Kid,” “The Wiz”).
Set in the turbulent early 1960s to mid-70s, DREAMGIRLS follows the rise of a trio of women—Effie (Jennifer Hudson), Deena (Beyoncé Knowles) and Lorrell (Anika Noni Rose)—who have formed a promising singing group called The Dreamettes. At a talent competition, they are discovered by an ambitious manager named Curtis Taylor, Jr. (Jamie Foxx), who offers them the opportunity of a lifetime: to become the back-up singers for headliner James “Thunder” Early (Eddie Murphy). Curtis gradually takes control of the girls’ look and sound, eventually giving them their own shot in the spotlight as The Dreams. That spotlight, however, begins to narrow in on Deena, finally pushing the less attractive Effie out altogether. Though the Dreams become a crossover phenomenon, they soon realize that the cost of fame and fortune may be higher than they ever imagined.
DREAMGIRLS is being directed by Bill Condon from a screenplay he adapted from the stage musical’s original book by Tom Eyen. An Academy Award® winner for his screenplay for “Gods and Monsters,” which he also directed, Condon received another Oscar® nomination for his screenplay adaptation of “Chicago.” Academy Award®-nominated producer Laurence Mark (“Jerry Maguire,” “As Good As It Gets,” “I, Robot”) is producing DREAMGIRLS, with Patricia Whitcher (“Memoirs of a Geisha,” “The Terminal”) executive producing. The lyrics are by Tom Eyen, with music by Henry Krieger.
Behind the camera, Condon is collaborating with several acclaimed artists to bring the world of DREAMGIRLS to the big screen. Production designer John Myhre, who just earned his third Oscar® nomination for his work on “Memoirs of a Geisha,” is re-creating the urban landscape of the 1960s and 70s for the film. Myhre previously won an Academy Award® for “Chicago” and also garnered an Oscar® nomination for “Elizabeth.” Costume designer Sharen Davis, who was honored with an Oscar® nomination for her work on the hit biopic “Ray,” is designing the wide-ranging costumes for DREAMGIRLS.
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