F. Scott Fitzgerald’s literary classic The Great Gatsby entered the public domain at the start of this year, and it didn’t take long before news came out about multiple planned adaptations, including a TV series and an animated movie. But the adaptations don’t stop there: a The Great Gatsby musical is also in the works, and today, word came out that Florence Welch, the rock star singer of Florence + The Machine, is writing the lyrics and co-writing the music for the new stage show.

The official title of this production appears to be The Great Gatsby, A New Musical (yes, with a comma instead of a colon), and a “timeline for a pre-Broadway engagement” is expected to be announced soon. Grammy nominated artist Florence Welch is writing the lyrics for the show and cooking up the music with fellow Grammy nominee Thomas Bartlett, a producer who you may know by his alias, “Doveman.” Welch is known for songs like “Dog Days Are Over,” “Spectrum (Say My Name),” and “Ship to Wreck,” among many others, while Bartlett has collaborated with Yoko Ono, Norah Jones, and Rufus Wainwright, just to name a few. /Film readers may recall his work on the Call Me By Your Name soundtrack with Sufjan Stevens, which Bartlett produced.

“This book has haunted me for a large part of my life,” Welch said in a statement. “It contains some of my favourite lines in literature. Musicals were my first love, and I feel a deep connection to Fitzgerald’s broken romanticism. It is an honour to have been offered the chance to recreate this book in song.” Welch has a lush, romantic, and haunting musical style which seems like a great fit for this material. In previous interviews, she’s pinpointed “sex, death, love, violence” as themes that she loves to explore, and all of those are on full display in Gatsby, so this seems like a dream project for her.

Rebecca Frecknall is directing the production, Amanda Ghost and Robert Fox are producing, Hannah Giannoulis and James Orange are executive producing, and Pulitzer Prize winning writer Martyna Majok is writing the book.

“I’m thrilled, honored, and inspired to work with this company of extraordinary artists, and to get to live in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s transcendent, gorgeous words,” Majok said. “I’m also overjoyed to be reunited with Rebecca Frecknall, with whom I had the most wonderful experience working on my play, Sanctuary City.”

The original cast recording of The Great Gatsby, A New Musical will be released on Warner Music.

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