GIRLS JUST WANT TO HAVE FUN
- Jul 10, 2024
- 2 min read
Updated: Mar 9
Girls Just Want to Have Fun, the musical adaptation of the 1985 cult film, is heading into a developmental workshop in Fall 2026 in a co-production with Lively McCabe Entertainment, Primary Wave Music, Point Park University, and the Pittsburgh Playhouse. The new stage musical will feature hit 1980s pop music—including the film’s titular anthem “Girls Just Want to Have Fun,” originally sung by Cyndi Lauper—as the creative team continues developing the show ahead of its eventual world premiere.
The musical’s book is written by M. Dickson (How I Met Your Father, Superstore) and Lauren Marcus (Tick, Tick…Boom!, The Jonathan Larson Project), and the production is directed by Jennifer Werner (The Book of Mormon). The show draws from Primary Wave’s expansive catalog of pop hits to create a high-energy score celebrating the music of the decade.
The stage show is based on the film’s screenplay by Amy Spies and features a score of 1980s chart-toppers. Girls Just Want to Have Fun tells the story of Janey, a high school gymnast whose strict Army colonel father insists she stay out of the spotlight. But when she moves to a new town and meets the bold and supportive Lynne, she disobeys her dad for the first time to enter a TV dance competition. Although the movie wasn’t a box office hit on its original release, it has since become a beloved cult favorite.
Spies also expressed her excitement about seeing the story take on a new life on stage: “I am excited that this great team is bringing to the stage my story of empowering female friendships and young women coming into their own.”
Follow along with the show on Instagram and TikTok, or read more about the upcoming adaptation on Playbill.com
“Primary Wave just wants to have fun, and we could not be more excited for our iconic hits from the '80s to provide the soundtrack for this beloved, classic story,” say the music publishers' team on the project, Natalia Nastaskin and Ramon Villa. “We are grateful to Amy Spies for entrusting us and our amazing partners at Lively McCabe with her culturally important work.”
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