Prince musical ‘Purple Rain’ to premiere in Minneapolis before moving to Broadway

The musical adaptation of Prince’s “Purple Rain” will have its first public performance in Minneapolis, Prince’s hometown, in spring 2025 before the production moves to Broadway.

The producers behind the live theater version of Prince’s iconic 1984 film announced Tuesday that the show will open at the State Theatre on Hennepin Avenue, just two blocks from First Avenue, the nightclub that features prominently in the movie.

The venue is a block away from Hiero Veiga’s 100-foot mural of Prince.

A significant part of “Purple Rain’s” development will take place in Minneapolis, which means the hiring of Twin Cities talent. The show will then have a multiweek run, according to officials at the Hennepin Theatre Trust, which presents Broadway productions.

“Minneapolis is where all great things Prince begin,” said Todd Duesing, president and CEO of the trust. “His spirit, energy and legacy live on in the people of our city.”

“Purple Rain” will have the longest pre-Broadway engagement of any show in the Twin Cities since “The Lion King” in 1997.

The effort is backed by the owners of the Prince estate, including the NorthStar Group, led by chairman and Prince estate lawyer L. Londell McMillan, and Primary Wave Music, founded by CEO Larry Mestel.

“The musical is being developed with Prince’s artistic influence,” Duesing said.

The Broadway producer is Orin Wolf, whose credits include “The Band’s Visit,” “Fiddler on the Roof” and “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical.”

No casting has been announced.

The story will be adapted by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, who was twice a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize (“Gloria” and “Everybody”). Lileana Blain-Cruz, a 2022 Tony nominee for “The Skin of Our Teeth” who directed “The Bluest Eye” at the Guthrie Theater in 2017, will stage “Purple Rain.”