Show History

History

Inspiration

Sister Act is based on the hit 1992 comedy film of the same name, originally starring Whoopi Goldberg. With a movie so popular and musically focused, Stage Entertainment decided to produce a stage adaptation. They brought on Oscar and Tony-winning composer Alan Menken, along with lyricist and frequent collaborator Glenn Slater. Bill and Cheri Steinkellner were hired to write the book.

Menken wanted to inspire his score off of 1970s music, specifically disco and gospel. As a result, the setting was changed from Reno and San Francisco in the 90s (the original setting of the movie) to Philadelphia in the 70s. In the transfer from the West End to Broadway, not only did Whoopi Godlberg herself jump on as as a producer, but the script underwent several revisions. Douglas Carter Beane kept the structure of the show and made several large changes.

Productions

Sister Act, based on the hit film of the same name, premiered at the Pasadena Playhouse in California running from October 24 to December 23, 2006. While in residence, it broke various box office records. The production ended up moving to the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia and ran from January 17 to February 25, 2007. The musical then moved across the pond. The West End premiere was on June 2, 2009 at the London Palladium, starring Patina Miller, Sheila Hancock, and Ian Lavender. It ran for more than a year and closed on October 30, 2010.

Sister Act opened on Broadway at the Broadway Theatre on April 20, 2011. After the West End production closed, the show went through a multitude of revisions, helmed by book writer Douglas Carter Beane. Patina Miller transferred with the production in the role of Deloris, costarring with Victoria Clark, Fred Applegate, and Chester Gregory. It closed on August 26, 2012 after 561 performances.

The musical has launched two tours: one in the UK and Ireland that ran from October 2010 to October 2012, and one in North America that opened during the fall of 2012. Sister Act has also been performed in quite a few countries around the world, including Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Australia, South Korea, and Mexico.