Need a new musical to die for? Based on the iconic 1992 film, Death Becomes Her is Broadway's new laugh-out-loud musical comedy. The acclaimed new musical is directed and choreographed by Tony Award winner Christopher Gattelli, features a book by Marco Pennette, and an original score by Julia Mattison & Noel Carey.
Madeline Ashton is the most beautiful actress (just ask her) ever to grace the stage and screen. Helen Sharp is the long-suffering author (just ask her) who lives in her shadow. They have always been the best of frenemies…until Madeline steals Helen’s fiancé away. As Helen plots revenge and Madeline clings to her rapidly fading star, their world is suddenly turned upside down by Viola Van Horn, a mysterious woman with a secret that’s to die for. After one sip of Viola’s magical potion, Madeline and Helen begin a new era of life (and death) with their youth and beauty restored…and a grudge to last eternity.
The film on which the musical is based (starring Meryl Streep, Goldie Hawn, and Bruce Willis) has earned cult status for its biting satire, groundbreaking special effects, and iconic performances by Meryl Streep, Goldie Hawn, and Bruce Willis. Directed by Robert Zemeckis, the film explores themes of vanity, immortality, and the absurd lengths people go to in pursuit of eternal youth. Its sharp humor and campy tone, coupled with its innovative use of early CGI technology, have made it a standout in the genre.
Over the years, Death Becomes Her has become a cultural touchstone, celebrated for its queer appeal, memorable one-liners, and commentary on society's obsession with beauty and aging. Its enduring popularity is reflected in frequent revivals, tributes, and its influence on subsequent works in film and fashion.
Before the musical arrived on Broadway, it played at the Cadillac Palace Theatre in Chicago in early 2024. Both the Chicago and original Broadway productions were led by Megan Hilty, Jennifer Simard, Christopher Sieber, and Michelle Williams.
So if you want perfection, look no further than Death Becomes Her.
To delve into that sort of darkness more might be upsetting, and potentially less brand-friendly for Universal, but the surface level-focus of Death Becomes Her kept gnawing at me. It also stalls the show’s second act. Once you have Madeline and Helen taking swings at each other—and yes, shovel combat is never not funny—the production has little new territory to cover, thematically or emotionally. The plot barrels on as the enthusiasm wanes, from both the audience and the performances. Sieber’s character, the most obvious voice for a grounding rebuttal to Helen and Madeline’s obsession with eternal youth, has a solo that’s too silly by half, a duet with a talking paint can. Stuck in the mode of camp exuberance, Gattelli powers through the rest of the action by means of a chase sequence (echoes of Some Like It Hot, though not Nicholaw-level precise) toward an anticlimactic finale. As on film, Helen and Madeline end up as allies, each dependent on the other to patch up her body. They cruise, forever youthful, toward eternity, making fun of other people’s funeral services. They leave us with a wink and meta-joke, a song about how they’ll never have an ending, but if they did, it might go a little like this … The conceit’s cleverly nipped and tucked, the work of fine theatrical plastic surgery, hard to dislike and ultimately—as a medical examiner might say of these women—without a heartbeat.
A perfect rejoinder to the ubiquitous Broadway Sucks These Days gripe about the too-many movie-to-stage adaptations has arrived at long last, and it’s a simple three-word response: Death Becomes Her. A virtually perfect big-budget, broad-appeal musical comedy that improves in every way over the 1992 film, director-choreographer Christopher Gattelli’s wildly entertaining vehicle for two of our best singer-actor-comedians on any stage today renders the movie-as-source snipe worthless.
2024 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2025 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Book of a Musical | Marco Pennette |
2025 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Costume Design of a Mus | Paul Tazewell |
2025 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Lead Performance in a Musical | Jennifer Simard |
2025 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Wig and Hair Design | Charles G. LaPointe |
2025 | Drama League Awards | DISTINGUISHED PERFORMANCE | Jennifer Simard |
2025 | Drama League Awards | DISTINGUISHED PERFORMANCE | Megan Hilty |
2025 | Drama League Awards | OUTSTANDING DIRECTION OF A MUSICAL | Christopher Gattelli |
2025 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Book of a Musical (Broadway or Off-Broadway) | Marco Pennette |
2025 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Choreography | Christopher Gattelli |
2025 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Costume Design | Paul Tazewell |
2025 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Direction of a Musical | Christopher Gattelli |
2025 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Featured Performer in a Broadway Musical | Christopher Sieber |
2025 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Lead Performer in a Broadway Musical | Jennifer Simard |
2025 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Lighting Design | Justin Townsend |
2025 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding New Broadway Musical | Death Becomes Her |
2025 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Orchestrations (Broadway or Off-Broadway) | Doug Besterman |
2025 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Scenic Design | Derek McLane |
2025 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Score (Broadway or Off-Broadway) | Noel Carey |
2025 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Score (Broadway or Off-Broadway) | Julia Mattison |
2025 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Sound Design | Peter Hylenski |
2025 | Tony Awards | Best Book of a Musical | Marco Pennette |
2025 | Tony Awards | Best Choreography | Christopher Gattelli |
2025 | Tony Awards | Best Costume Design of a Musical | Paul Tazewell |
2025 | Tony Awards | Best Direction of a Musical | Christopher Gattelli |
2025 | Tony Awards | Best Lighting Design of a Musical | Justin Townsend |
2025 | Tony Awards | BEST ORIGINAL SCORE (Music and/or Lyrics) | Julia Mattison |
2025 | Tony Awards | BEST ORIGINAL SCORE (Music and/or Lyrics) | Noel Carey |
2025 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical | Megan Hilty |
2025 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical | Jennifer Simard |
2025 | Tony Awards | Best Scenic Design of a Musical | Derek McLane |
Videos