In “Did we really need this?” news, a stage musical featuring the music of Alanis Morissette, specifically her iconic 1995 album, Jagged Little Pill will make its debut in May of next year.
The musical, also called Jagged Little Pill, will feature the songs that this angsty 20-something was singing fresh after her college graduation, including “Ironic”, “Hand in My Pocket” and, of course, “You Oughta Know.” Juno screenwriter (and Oscar winner) Diablo Cody is writing the book of the show, which Playbill says will “follow a modern, multi-generational family and will explore gender identity and race.” The production will be directed by Diane Paulus, who won a Tony in 2013 for her revival of the Musical Pippin.
The musical is Diablo’s first staged production and, in a press release said, “I am so excited to tell a modern story through these iconic songs. Alanis’s music is full of powerful narratives that lend themselves organically to this process.”
The 42-year-old singer, whose album sold more than 33 million copies and earned her five Grammys, including Album of the Year, shares Diablo’s excitement. She said,
This team that has come together for this Jagged Little Pill musical is my musical theatre dream come true. The chemistry between all of us is crackling and I feel honored to be diving into these songs again, surrounded by all of this searing talent. Diablo and Diane are already taking these deeply personal songs that are part of my soul’s marrow to a whole other level of hope, freedom and complexity.
Wow, soul marrow. Sounds intense. I wonder if the show will finally confirm or deny that Dave Coulier is the inspiration for “You Oughta Know.” I am curious as to whether or not there will be a scene set in a theater. I went through a huge Alanis phase back in the day and still love these songs, and with the creative team behind this production, it could be awesome…or a complete train wreck. We will find out when the show opens on May 5, 2018 at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Photos: Getty Images, WENN.com
This is one of my fave albums ever…but I dont know if they will translate to a stage musical. I cant imagine sitting in a theater rocking out to ‘you oughta know’ but I will reserve judgement as I love Alanis
my single response to this article’s headline: ….why?
and then I realized 1) they have no new ideas 2) they still need to make money 3) a sucker is born every minute, and those suckers grow up to have money too.
its why we still have the transformers franchise (its scheduled all the way up until 2019…) idiots go see stupid shit and they are so stupid, it literally doesnt occur to them it is shit and they just lost money.
I think it sounds awesome! I would totally go with my girlfriends.
I’ll be there so I’ll let you know. Other recent Paulus directed plays at ART have included the Audra McDonald version of Porgy & Bess and Waitress
I lived & breathed that album during my angsty college years. Her songs, not to mention her voice, were so powerful. I’m definitely intrigued by this idea.
You Oughta Know is my shame-free karaoke safe space. I’m a gen Xer and it’s weird to see twenty-somethings singing along to every word. Maybe they’re trying to drown me out…?
Lol.
This song was very specific to a college breakup for me. I went from self-pity to righteous anger and outrage after listening to it on a loop for a week.
My poor ex didn’t know what hit him. I was Xena Warrior Queen on the warpath!!!
Good times.
We reconnected about a decade later and he is a very good friend. Ribs me about it all the time.
On a different note, i’m still traumatised at the thought that Uncle Joey inspired this level of anger and heartbreak. Uncle Jessy was the more likely character to leave such emotion. Uncle Joey was the cuddly one who made it all ok. 😊
I get ya. The tryhard clan. You sing to your heart’s content. I bought this album when it came out. I was nineteen, a college sophomore, and an atomic bomb. I needed this album. She knew my feelings through and through.
If this musical happens, can we get a bunch of Catholic girls dancing and smoking during Forgiven?
All the yesses.
Let the record show.
Although in retrospect it was a decent record especially considering what was to come in the industry. That album was pure fluff and in no way iconic.
All the cool women I knew in the 90s owned and were listening to PJ Harvey and Tori Amos or Bjork. A little bit earlier it was Kate Bush and slightly later Lucinda Williams.
And I can guarantee you that those women knew the actual definition of irony which isn’t ‘rain on your wedding day’
Also if you’re asking I think a musical based on any of their work would hold up but AM was a bit of a poseur. And in no way a great writer who’s work can hold up.
(Ok turning off my inner 90s music critic now).
Dont forget Liz Phair, Kim Gordon, Ani DeFranco, Kathleen Hannah, Kim Deal, etc.
I hated Jagged Little Pill, but I know I was in the minority.
Yeah, I never got the popularity of “Jagged Little Pill.” My dad, however, loved it.
You’re right there were many women artists at that time who were much better. I just named the few that I remember everyone listening to. I went to college in 94 to a moderately artsy state school and almost no one was listening to Alanis Morrissette. Whereas Under the Pink (Tori Amos), Dummy (Portishead), To Bring You My Love (PJ Harvey) and Bjork’s Post were so ubiquitous in my circle Ani Difranco too.
They were cool in their own world. Look at the snow blanket called Lilith Fair. They were obtuse and completely out of the loop in their privilege. I began college in 1994 and felt they missed so much from women they excluded. Sure, they had good songs. But, overall, I never thought they were cool while following the isms of the world.
As a vocalist, in terms of pure talent and range, Alanis outshines all of them but Bjork and Lucinda. And Kate, of course. Lucinda has that wobbly, drunken angel vibrato, that always makes her sound slightly off, but I like her.
Ironic is weird to me because Alanis is a good lyricist and a smart woman… and those words don’t reflect that, lol. A lot of people have called her the creator of ‘safe rage’ music, like Courtney Love turned down to 1, but I still think she’s written some great songs.
She looks very nice as a dark brunette, blonde not so much
I heart Alanis forever but her fashion is terrible!
While there were many better female musicians making records in the 90s, Alanis remains relevant because she helped put a woman’s voice front and center in the mainstream consciousness. Yes, PJ, Bjork, Tori, Liz, and even Courtney Love were edgier and cooler and probably even more talented (though it’s not a competition). But Alanis is forever the woman who got her voice heard, by everyone, and she wasn’t trying to be pretty. Like it or not, her voice and this record are certainly iconic.