Craig Zadan and Neil Meron have hitched their wagon to one of the leading players in American theater, the Shubert Organization, with the signing of a three-year development/production deal.
The award-winning producing team, who have collected a trophy cabinet full of Oscars, Golden Globes, Emmys, Grammys and Tony Awards over their careers, are currently gearing up to produce their third Academy Awards telecast in February hosted by Neil Patrick Harris as well as Peter Pan Live! for NBC on Dec. 4, starring Christopher Walken and Allison Williams. That project follows last year’s popular television event The Sound of Music Live!
Under the agreement, Shubert will partner with Zadan and Meron on the development and production of original plays and musicals, as well as revivals.
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“We started our careers learning from the legendary Joseph Papp,” said Zadan and Meron in a statement. “Since then, we’ve searched for a home that is forward-thinking and dedicated to excellence.”
The Shubert Organization is the most powerful landlord on Broadway, owning and operating 17 of the sector’s 40 theaters. The century-old company, headed by chairman Philip J. Smith and president Robert E. Wankel, has had a hand in countless landmark productions over the decades, including Dreamgirls, Cats, Amadeus, Children of a Lesser God and Sunday in the Park With George.
Shubert currently is a producer on the British import The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, among others.
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“We’ve known and admired Craig and Neil since their early years in New York in the 1970s,” said Smith. “They’ve gone on to triumph in every entertainment medium.”
Since expanding from film and television into Broadway, Zadan and Meron have produced the 2010 revival of Promises, Promises, starring Sean Hayes and Kristin Chenoweth, and the following year’s revival of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, which headlined Daniel Radcliffe.
Zadan and Meron also have brought Broadway shows to the big screen — including Hairspray and best picture Oscar-winner Chicago — and to television, including Gypsy, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella, Annie, The Music Man and A Raisin in the Sun.
