Robert DeNiro Directs Chazz Palminteri’s ‘A Bronx Tale’ on Broadway
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Robert DeNiro is coming back to Broadway, this time as a director.
Showbiz411.com reports that De Niro will direct a new musical version of Chazz Palminteri’s “A Bronx Tale.” De Niro directed the film version in 1993, and the story has appeared on Broadway previously as a one-man show in 2007. The new production will be presented by Tommy Mottola, and features a book by Palminteri and a score by David Bryan.
Bryan is the keyboardist for Bon Jovi and won a Tony Award for his work on “Memphis.” Sergio Trujillo will choreograph, and is best known for his work on “Jersey Boys.”
No official announcement about the musical has yet confirmed this information.
“A Bronx Tale” began its life as a one-man show performed by Palminteri in Los Angeles and Off-Broadway at various points during the late 1980s. The Broadway run was a limited engagement at the Walter Kerr Theatre that began previews October 4, 2007 and officially opened October 25 of that year. Jerry Zaks directed that production, which after being extended played a total of 108 regular performances along with 19 previews.
The story is partially inspired by Palminteri’s childhood growing up as an Italian-American teenager in New York in the 1960s that strikes up a friendship with a local gangster.
Robert De Niro currently is nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his work in the “Silver Linings Playbook.” The winner will be announced at the 85th Academy Awards ceremony this Sunday, February 24. He has previously won two Oscars, the first for 1974’s “The Godfather Part II” and the second for 1980’s “Raging Bull.”
Palminteri also has been nominated for an Oscar for his work in “Bullets Over Broadway.” He has appeared in numerous other movies including “The Usual Suspects.” He last appeared on stage in “The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui,” a production by Al Pacino.