At this point, 13 is as much a part of millennials’ generational consciousness as Ariana Grande, who got her start as a cast member in the Broadway musical. It became a smash hit, with 13 revivals all over the world and eventual ubiquity in every high school drama club. Now, the beloved 13 musical production is coming to Netflix, and it will include some big Broadway names.
13 is about a Jewish teen named Evan Goldman, who moves from New York City to the Midwest. He deals with his new school and social cliques, all while planning his Bar Mitzvah. The musical launched the careers of Grande and Elizabeth Gillies; both stars would later join the cast of Nickelodeon’s Victorious. The original musical was written for a teen-only cast, raising speculation that Grande and Gillies may star in the Netflix adaptation. Both Grande and Gillies are 26 and could potentially pass for their original teen characters, or at least lend their voices. Who wouldn’t want to hear Grande and Gillies belt out “It Can’t Be True” again?
The adaptation will be directed by Tamra Davis, who has a fascinating career in her own right. Davis directed music videos for Sonic Youth and Depeche Mode, movies such as Billy Madison, Half Baked, The Punk Singer (a documentary about Kathleen Hanna), and Crossroads, which starred Britney Spears (and was written by Shonda Rhimes).
As for music, there will be new songs (!), composed by Jason Robert Brown, 13’s original songwriter. He also wrote “Jason’s Song (Gave It Away)” for Ariana Grande’s album Dangerous Woman. Maybe this means Grande will have some part to play in the adaptation? Cheerleaders everywhere can only hope