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The officially licensed marketing logo for
Monopoly! |
NEW YORK -- Is there any communications medium
left that Bill Gates hasn't conquered?
In a surprise move that has stunned the theater world, songwriter
Andrew Lloyd Webber has announced a partnership with producer Cameron
Mackintosh to create a new musical based on the life and career of
Microsoft CEO Bill Gates.
The play, titled Monopoly!, will follow Gates from his
childhood through his short-lived college days at Harvard, culminating
in his rise to power in the business world.
"His story is perfect for the stage," said Webber, best known for his
work on Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Coat, Phantom of
the Opera and Cats. "He has the intelligence and vision to
dropout of the ivy-league world of Harvard to pursue his true talent -
buying new technologies from others and slapping his logo on it."
Webber added that he has already penned several songs, from the
opening tune of "Boot up!" to the lighthearted duet "You say assimilate…
I say innovate" to the stirring first act closer "I B.M.ed on IBM."
"All of the elements of great drama are there," added Mackintosh,
producer of Les Miserables and Miss Saigon. "A man whose
skills fall far short of his peers journeys to the top of their field
with intuition, chutzpah and overly-aggressive negotiation tactics."
"Bill Gates is the living embodiment of the American dream."
"Bill Gates," he added, "is Macbeth with stock options instead of
swordplay."
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Marty and Bernie are psyched about their upcoming roles in
Monopoly! |
Fresh off their Tony Award wins for Best Actor and Best Actress in a
musical, Martin Short and Bernadette Peters have been signed to the lead
roles of Monopoly! Short will play Gates, while Peters will
portray his former business partner Paul Allen.
"I had a wonderful love song already written -- 'I Loved Bill's Brain
(But He Crashed My Heart' -- and it was perfect for Bernadette," said
Webber, who believes that few in the audience will notice the fictional
liberties he has taken. "The plot is quite complicated, but fortunately
the set and costumes are very large and shiny."
Monopoly! will open in London's West End for a test run. The
musical will premiere on Broadway, Mackintosh said, "as soon as we
settle all of Gates' lawsuits."