At some point during the Gnomeo & Juliet junket, I became fascinated with the idea of taking the lawn ornament-populated adaptation of Shakespeare’s romantic tragedy to Broadway. After all, Disney managed the same feat with The Lion King, another Disney animated hit that Julie Taymor somehow turned into a blockbuster musical. And Gnomeo, like The Lion King, is bathed in the four-quadrant-friendly sounds of Sir Elton John. Why couldn’t it follow the same path? Never mind that the film isn’t all that great — visions of little people with conical hats on a grass-covered stage, surrounding by massive fountains and lawn-mowers, flickered in my head.
I sat down with John, who, along with his partner, David Furnish, produced Gnomeo & Juliet, to discuss his film’s Broadway prospects:
Gnomeo & Juliet is now playing in theaters everywhere.
