By Ray Pride Pride@moviecitynews.com

BROADWAY’S SHUBERT ORGANIZATION ANNOUNCES A DEVELOPMENT/PRODUCTION AGREEMENT WITH PRODUCERS CRAIG ZADAN & NEIL MERON

Posted Thursday, October 23rd, 2014 - Comments Off on BROADWAY’S SHUBERT ORGANIZATION ANNOUNCES A DEVELOPMENT/PRODUCTION AGREEMENT WITH PRODUCERS CRAIG ZADAN & NEIL MERON
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 NEW YORK (October 23, 2014) — The Shubert Organization has signed a three-year development/production deal with producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, it was announced today by Shubert Chairman, Philip J. Smith, and Shubert President, Robert E. Wankel.

Under the agreement, Shubert will partner with Zadan and Meron in the development/production of original plays and musicals, as well as revivals.

“We’ve known and admired Craig and Neil since their early years in New York in the 1970’s. They’ve gone on to triumph in every entertainment medium,” stated Mr. Smith.

“Their film and television adaptations of the great Broadway musicals have been enjoyed by audiences around the world. We look forward to collaborating with them on many exciting projects,” stated Mr. Wankel.

“We started our careers learning from the legendary Joseph Papp,” said Zadan and Meron. “Since then, we’ve searched for a home that is forward-thinking and dedicated to excellence. We are thrilled to join with the theatre’s dynamic forces, Phil Smith and Bob Wankel at the Shubert Organization, in developing new work, even producing a revival here and there, and finding material we’re passionate about creating together.”

The Shubert Organization has been a leading force in the American theatre for over 100 years. Hundreds of Shubert productions and co-productions have been presented on Broadway and across the country, including Cats, Sunday in the Park with George, Dreamgirls, The Heidi Chronicles, Jerome Robbins’ Broadway, Amadeus, Children of a Lesser God, The Grapes of Wrath, Ain’t Misbehavin’, A Few Good Men, God of Carnage, Lucky Guy, Spamalot and the current production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Under the leadership of Philip J. Smith, Chairman, and Robert E. Wankel, President, the company currently owns and operates seventeen Broadway theatres.

Craig Zadan and Neil Meron’s productions have earned a total of six Academy Awards®, five Golden Globes, 13 Emmy Awards, two Peabody Awards, a Grammy Award, five GLAAD Awards, two NAACP Image Awards, and two Tony Awards. After successfully producing two record-breaking Academy Awards telecasts in 2013 and 2014, Zadan and Meron will be producing their third Oscar® telecast for ABC in 2015.  They also produced last year’s hugely successful NBC presentation of “The Sound of Music Live!” starring Carrie Underwood. This year, they are producing the telecast of “Peter Pan Live!,” again for NBC, starring Christopher Walken and Allison Williams. On Broadway, they recently produced the Tony-winning How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying starring Daniel Radcliffe and John Larroquette, and the Tony-winning Promises, Promises starring Sean Hayes and Kristin Chenoweth. Other Broadway shows they have brought to the small screen include “Gypsy,” Rodgers & Hammerstein’s “Cinderella,” “Annie,” “The Music Man,” and “A Raisin in the Sun.” For the big screen, they have produced “Hairspray” and Oscar Best Picture winner, “Chicago.”

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