Jean-Michel Basquiat will reportedly be the subject of a new Broadway musical starring Motown's Eric LaJuan Summers as the iconic abstract expressionist. The play will span Basquiat's life from his roots as a graffiti artist to his place at the helm of a revolution in post-pop art that gestated in New York City before sweeping the art world. Basquiat's arrival signaled a vibrant cultural coup led in-part by his distinctive paintings - a still-emerging body of work with deviant roots and inimitably dope style that crash landed in the 80s and made him a star almost overnight. Jean-Michel Basquiat's meteoric rise was countered only by the painter's lingering addiction and subsequent death of a heroin overdose at age 27. These days his name remains golden amongst purveyors of cool who pepper his name across hip-hop tracks. Basquiat has also enjoyed a renaissance as a cult figure following the fairly recent emergence of never-before-seen works owned by his former partner Alexis Adler. The first reading for the forthcoming production is slated to occur on June 24th. Paul Stancato will direct the musical written by Chris Blisset, Matt Uremovich and Larry Tobias.
Spotted at MA
