opens at London\u2019s Troubadour Canary Wharf Theatre<\/a>.<\/p>\nThe play, which is based on the young adult novel by Suzanne Collins and 2012 film that catapulted actor Jennifer Lawrence into the mainstream, is just the latest film-to-stage adaptation from Hollywood.<\/p>\n
This isn\u2019t a new playbook. After all, Disney revolutionized the space by adapting its animated films like \u201cThe Lion King,\u201d \u201cBeauty and the Beast\u201d and \u201cAladdin\u201d into Broadway musical hits. But it is one that studios are turning to again, particularly as they look to connect more deeply with audiences and expand the fan base of their franchises. <\/p>\n
Last year, Universal Theatrical Group debuted a musical stage adaptation of the 1992 film \u201cDeath Becomes Her\u201d on Broadway.<\/p>\n
In addition to \u201cThe Hunger Games,\u201d Lionsgate has several other theatrical shows in the works, including a stage adaptation of the 2017 film \u201cWonder\u201d opening in Boston in December, as well as \u201cNow You See Me Live\u201d opening that same month at the Sydney Opera House.<\/p>\n
Next year, there will be a stage version of \u201cLa La Land,\u201d as well as a new production of the iconic classic \u201cDirty Dancing.\u201d (Of course, the opposite is also happening, with \u201cWicked\u201d as the most recent example of a book-to-stage-to-film pipeline.)<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you look at the way that fans are engaging with entertainment, there are so many different mediums that are important now, and experiential is a big one,\u201d Jenefer Brown, Lionsgate\u2019s president of global products and experiences, said an interview. \u201cWith all of us spending so much time online and in digital mediums, the idea of that shared live experience in a theater is something that\u2019s highly appealing.\u201d<\/p>\n
But getting \u201cThe Hunger Games\u201d to the stage wasn\u2019t easy \u2014 the process took almost seven years from the inception of the idea to first previews. As part of the show\u2019s development, the producers also built a custom theater in London. Brown spoke with The Times about why the dystopian franchise was a good candidate for live theater and why communal experiences are so important.<\/p>\n
This interview has been edited for clarity and length.<\/p>\n
What made \u201cThe Hunger Games\u201d ripe for the stage?<\/b><\/p>\n
It\u2019s an enduring story that has so much relevance to occurrences that happen in the world today. I think that there\u2019s just a ton of cultural significance.<\/p>\n
And what we know about \u201cThe Hunger Games\u201d is that there\u2019s always a new wave of fans that discover it. Now we\u2019re seeing Gen Alpha reading the books and watching the movies, and of course, we have Gen Z fans and millennial fans, and parents from other generations who have been on the journey with their children. It\u2019s a way to bring aspects of the book to life, maybe in a different interpretation, or to let fans be able to explore certain things in a greater depth than we were able to do on a movie screen.<\/p>\n
What does a stage play do for audiences that, say, a series or ride does not?<\/b><\/p>\n
When you\u2019re seeing something live, we don\u2019t have the tricks that we have behind a camera in a movie.<\/p>\n
You have to really find ways to bring the audience on a journey, and you can\u2019t hide anything. That\u2019s part of the magic of the experience, and for fans to be there and be mesmerized by some of the things that we\u2019re executing in real time on a stage with special effects and illusions and real people doing the stunt choreography and the stunt work right in front of you, I think that there\u2019s a lot of value in that type of experience.<\/p>\n
Does this allow you to reach different audiences than those who already saw the films?<\/b><\/p>\n
Obviously, a lot of fans are interested, but I think theatergoers in general, who maybe haven\u2019t been as exposed to \u201cThe Hunger Games\u201d or aren\u2019t super fans, are going to be interested from the theater side of it. There\u2019s been a lot of buzz and excitement in London, in the theater world, knowing that we had a new theater being built.<\/p>\n
In general, lots of of people want to engage with experiences. We\u2019re seeing just a huge sort of upward trend in interest, particularly amongst Gen Z and Gen Alpha audiences. Someone who maybe has read the books but hasn\u2019t seen the movie yet will come see the stage show and then watch the movie. And I think this idea of all of it feeding each other, depending on which entry point you choose, is a really interesting thing for us as a studio to think about.<\/p>\n
Did the pandemic turbocharge interest in live entertainment?<\/b><\/p>\n
It\u2019s an interest in live stage and live entertainment, and the idea of getting out again, supporting the arts and supporting shared experiences. We\u2019ve definitely seen, thankfully, a recovery and an upswing in that area.<\/p>\n
How big of a business is the stage aspect of Lionsgate global products and experiences?<\/b><\/p>\n
We have three shows opening before the end of this year, and about that number slated for next year. So it really is a very busy and active space for us, and I think more in the pipeline. We probably are spending about a third of our time in this space, and I don\u2019t see that changing.<\/p>\n