The musical, about a comedian’s rise and fall, plans to open at the Nederlander Theater in the spring.
Billy Crystal plans to return to Broadway in the spring as the star of a new musical, “Mr. Saturday Night,” adapted from his 1992 film. The project has been in development for years — he said Mel Brooks first suggested in 2005 that he think about adapting the film for the stage — and last month Crystal led a nine-performance presentation of the show at Barrington Stage Company, in the Berkshires region of Western Massachusetts. “Mr. Saturday Night” is a comedy about the rise and fall of a stand-up comedian named Buddy Young Jr. Crystal not only starred in the film but he also directed, produced and co-authored it. He is writing the musical’s book with Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel, who also collaborated with him on the film’s screenplay. The stage adaptation features music by Jason Robert Brown (a Tony winner for “The Bridges of Madison County” and “Parade”) and lyrics by Amanda Green (“Hands on a Hardbody”). The director is John Rando (a Tony winner for “Urinetown”), and the choreographer is Ellenore Scott (who is also choreographing next spring’s revival of “Funny Girl”). Joining Crystal in the eight-person cast will be David Paymer, playing Young’s brother, Stan.
