More than a few theater projects are paying homage to music icons of yore this year. There's the Janis Joplin musical, the Duke Ellington musical, the Carole King musical, the Tupac musical. The list goes on.
This week a new Kickstarter campaign has opted to hop on the bandwagon as well, managing to find a rock 'n' roll legacy that hasn't already been bought, adapted and turned into a bevy of song and dance routines -- the Violent Femmes.
Yes, two 1980s alternative rock enthusiasts by the names of Matt Williams and Gregory Victor want to turn the Violent Femmes catalogue into a musical. Titled "Hitting the Ground," the production aims to pay tribute to the geniuses behind "Blister in the Sun" with off-Broadway ambitions.
The Kickstarter page outlines a quick plot summary for the musical, which seems to revolve around a ragtag group of strangers (drug-addicted rockers, a beauty queen, a troubled veteran and a Rolling Stone writer) who happen to be on a USO tour together. The story takes a turn when the characters "are forced to jump from their airplane to avoid a crash-landing, only to land in the remote Appalachian mountains." There they are apparently greeted by "an isolated community of devout mountain Shakers." If you haven't already guessed it, chaos ensues.
VF lead singer Gordon Gano has given the show a preliminary kiss of approval, but we'll all have to wait until the musical's first reading on January 20, 2014 to see if Williams and Victor receive their ultimate permission. Gano was the same guy who gave Wendy's the rights to use "Blister in the Sun" in a commercial and frequently performs with a Violent Femmes tribute band called "Dirty Femmes." So we can't imagine he'll be too hard on them.
In the run-up to the reading, the Kickstarter campaign for "Hitting the Ground" is attempting to raise $6,000 for personnel costs and a rehearsal space. The last time we checked, 40 backers had emerged to support the project and we anticipate more alt rock fans will do the same.
Check out the Kickstarter page here and let us know your thoughts on the musical in the comments.