Musicals about murderers aren't new. After all, Sweeney Todd is a musical theatre classic and Heathers is coming back to New York soon. But it's rare for there to be a musical about a currently living (alleged) killer. Well, enter Luigi the Musical, inspired by Luigi Mangione, the 26-year-old man accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson earlier this year.
Luigi will premiere at the Taylor Street Theater in San Francisco, running June 13鈥�28. The 60-minute musical has been created by a team of local theatre makers: director Nova Bradford and songwriter Arielle Johnson. According to the official synopsis, the new musical will imagine Mangione's backstory (details about him have been scarce): "A wildly irreverent, razor-sharp comedy that imagines the true story of Luigi Mangione, the alleged corporate assassin turned accidental folk hero. With real-life cellmates Sam Bankman-Fried and Diddy by his side, Luigi navigates friendship, justice, and the absurdity of viral fame. Bold, campy, and unafraid, Luigi: the Musical is both laugh-out-loud funny and surprisingly thoughtful. If you like your comedy smart and your showtunes with a criminal record, Luigi is your new favorite felony."
In an interview with the , Bradford says: 鈥淥ne of the central ideas that we wanted to explore with this musical is this tendency for us to project meaning onto these types of figures." She then added: 鈥淲e鈥檙e not valorizing any of these characters, and we鈥檙e also not trivializing any of their actions or alleged actions."
The creators also said they are taking inspirations from Chicago (namely "The Cell Block Tango"). They've also been posting rehearsal footage on Instagram, including one of Jonny Stein as Mangione.
Though the musical is currently billed as a comedy, real life is less funny. The Justice Department is currently seeking the death penalty against Mangione. His lawyers are asking a federal judge to block that decision, calling a 鈥減olitical stunt" that violates Mangione's right to due process.
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