Unironically, Idina Menzel To Lead Early Reading Of ‘Jagged Little Pill’ Musical

By Becky Scott June 5, 2017

In today’s edition of “God giveth,” Idina Menzel will lead a reading of Alanis Morissette’s ‘Jagged Little Pill’ musical.

In today’s edition of “God taketh away,” Menzel will not be starring in the debut run of the show, set to be staged at Cambridge’s American Repertory in May 2018. Instead, she’ll be in New York City, starring in the off-Broadway play ‘Skintight.’

As of now, Menzel is only scheduled to take place in the Actors’ Equity reading of the musical adaptation but the good news is actors who lead early readings often return later to take center stage in the real thing.

Will ‘Jagged Little Pill’ be good? Never has there ever been a “good” execution of an “album-to-Broadway” attempt at theater (who can I sue for my inability to un-see ‘Mamma Mia’?) but, as Justin Bieber says, never say never! The important thing is that someone – specifically, Diablo Cody, who wrote the book, and Tom Kitt, who penned the orchestral arrangements – sensed that the world needs this right now.

After all, ‘Jagged Little Pill’ got thousands of women (and men) who are now in their mid-twenties through their harrowing adolescence. It was the album that taught us it’s okay to talk about sex. It taught us that it’s okay to be angry out loud. It taught us what the word “ironic” doesn’t mean.

Deep down, I know Menzel will be back to assume the role that she was born for – that of an irate Canadian who has been unforgivably wronged by Dave Coulier.

Becky Scott is the editor of The Schmooze. Follow her on Twitter at @arr_scott

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. We’ve started our Passover Fundraising Drive, and we need 1,800 readers like you to step up to support the Forward by April 21. Members of the Forward board are even matching the first 1,000 gifts, up to $70,000.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism, because every dollar goes twice as far.

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO