Skip To Content
JEWISH. INDEPENDENT. NONPROFIT.
Make a Passover gift and support Jewish journalism. DONATE NOW
The Schmooze

Buy Stock In Kleenex — ‘The Notebook’ Is Going To Be A Broadway Musical

I love you, “The Notebook, the Musical.” I am who I am because of “The Notebook, The Musical.” “The Notebook, The Musical” is every reason, every hope, and every dream I’ve ever had, and no matter what happens to us in the future, everyday we are together is the greatest day of my life. I will always be yours, “The Notebook, The Musical.”

^You when the mega-hit Nicholas Sparks romantic novel-turned-movie “The Notebook” becomes a Broadway musical.

It was announced on Thursday that “The Notebook,” the cultural phenomenon of beautiful white people making out in a puddle of their own tears, will head to Broadway. Folk-pop star Ingrid Michaelson and “This Is Us” writer Bekah Brunstetter will lead the adaptation, with Sparks on board as a producer alongside Kevin McCollum and Kurt Deutsch.

The story of “The Notebook,” which topped best seller charts in 1996, follows an elderly man as he reads from a notebook to a dementia-stricken woman, reciting a story of a young poor man and Southern teen heiress who engaged in a smoldering (but physically damp) doomed relationship many years before. Sex and death ensue. The book was adapted into a 2004 movie starring then-unknown Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams, with a screenplay by James Leven. The movie is, perhaps, responsible for 90 percent of Americans’ misconceptions about love and relationships.

Other than Brunstetter and presumably Leven, “The Notebook” and “The Notebook, The Musical” are pretty goyish. We’re here to honor the fact that Ingrid Michaelson spent her formative musical years at the JCC of Long Island. Oh, lovely Ingrid! As Noah and Allie would say, if we’re a bird, then you’re a bird.

Jenny Singer is the deputy lifestyle editor for the Forward. You can reach her at [email protected] or on Twitter @jeanvaljenny

This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.

This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.

With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.

The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.

Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

Republish This Story

Please read before republishing

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines.
You must comply with the following:

  • Credit the Forward
  • Retain our pixel
  • Preserve our canonical link in Google search
  • Add a noindex tag in Google search

See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.

To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.

We don't support Internet Explorer

Please use Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge to view this site.