Frozen Songwriters, Dear Evan Hansen Writer Team for Hulu Musical Series Up Here

Hulu has ordered the musical romantic comedy series “Up Here,” with an all-star lineup set behind the camera.

Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, the songwriters of “Frozen” and “Frozen 2,” Steven Levenson, who wrote the book for “Dear Evan Hansen,” and veteran TV writer Danielle Sanchez-Witzel (“New Girl,” “My Name Is Earl”) will all serve as writers and executive producers on the series.

Levenson will also serve as showrunner, while the Anderson-Lopez and Lopez will write original songs for the series. Thomas Kail, who previously directed Broadway shows like “Hamilton” and “In the Heights,” will direct and executive produce under his Old 320 Sycamore Productions banner. Jennifer Todd of Old 320 Sycamore will also executive produce. 20th Television is the studio. Old 320 Sycamore is currently under an overall deal at the studio.

Hulu has given “Up Here” an eight-episode order. The show is set in New York City in the waning days of 1999, following the extraordinary story of one ordinary couple, as they fall in love – and discover that the single greatest obstacle to finding happiness together might just be themselves – and the treacherous world of memories, obsessions, fears, and fantasies that lives inside their heads. Casting is currently underway with production set to begin this summer in New York. Anderson-Lopez and Lopez wrote a stage version of “Up Here” that opened in San Diego in 2015.

Sanchez-Witzel’s other TV credits include “The Carmichael Show” and “George Lopez.” She was recently announced as the co-creator and showrunner of the Netflix comedy series “Survival of the Thickest,” based on the book of essays of the same name by Michelle Buteau. Sanchez-Witzel is repped by UTA, 3 Arts, and Jackoway Austen Tyerman.

Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez are two of the most celebrated songwriters working today. They have won two Oscars for best original song in their careers — one for “Let It Go” from “Frozen” and another for “Remember Me” from “Coco.” They also recently won the Emmy for best original music and lyrics for “Agatha All Along” from “WandaVision.” They are repped by WME.

In addition to his work on the book for “Dear Evan Hansen,” Levenson most recently wrote the feature adaptation of “tick, tick…BOOM!” and also developed the Emmy-winning FX limited series “Fosse/Verdon.” He is repped by WME and attorney David Berlin.

Source: Read Full Article

Previous post Ryanair flights cancelled: passengers vent fury as airline cancels 150 out of 400 German flights today
Next post Brit mum fights off sex predator as he ripped her clothes off along dark forest road after hitching lift with bogus ‘taxi driver’ on Turkish holiday