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Lee Hall and Elton John working on Animal Farm musical
A musical based on Animal Farm is coming to London.
Friday, 23 July 2010
Award-winning writer Lee Hall has revealed he is working on a stage version of Animal Farm for the West End with Elton John.
He told the Daily Mail's Baz Bamigboye the story - written by George Orwell as a criticism of Stalinism - is perfect for the stage, with many phrases lending themselves to lyrics.
"I'm deep into it, writing songs for pigs and other four-legged friends," Hall commented.
The Tony and Olivier Award-winner said it has taken nearly two years to acquire the rights, but that he has now been given the go-ahead to work on Animal Farm after the summer.
He will work on a "batch" of lyrics in the meantime prior to his first meeting with John to discuss music, he said.
There has not yet been any news regarding a producer, cast or possible venue and the musical is not likely to be ready for two years.
Animal Farm is a consistently popular novel and was chosen as one of the best-ever English language books by Time magazine in 2008.