Super Cool News

Have you read Leanna Renee Hieber's fantabulous book, The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker? No? Well then get to it! The follow up, The Darkly Luminous Fight for Persephone Parker is new out on shelves and now Dorchester has made this excellent announcement:

Dorchester Publishing is thrilled to announce the signing of the Broadway musical option agreement for Leanna Renee Hieber’sThe Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker, a haunting tale of love and ghosts in Victorian England.

Mt. Claire Entertainment bought the novel for its musical adaptation, and Hieber, who has innate talent for invoking the Victorian era in her writing, will pen the script. Composing music and lyrics are Kenny Seymour (Broadway credits include music direction for “Memphis” and arrangements for “The Wiz”) and Nicholas Roman Lewis (creative development for “The Alchemist” and “They Call Me La Lupe”), with additional orchestrations and arrangements by Jim Abbott (“Wicked,” “Bombay Dreams,” “Disney’s Tarzan”)

“(Hieber’s) lifelong passions for the Victorian era, classic fairy tales, the paranormal and ancient mythology combined with her professional background as a classically trained theater actress endow this project with the essential ingredients for titanic commercial success,” said Tim DeYoung, Dorchester Senior VP for sales, marketing and distribution.

A September 2009 release from Dorchester imprint Leisure Books, the novel tells a lyrical tale of an eerily beautiful young woman who harbors a special talent for interacting with ghosts. The rich, atmospheric love story employs a brilliant cadre of characters who believe Percy may be the key to an ancient prophecy. The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker acquired an impressive fan base, rave reviews, and a slot on the Barnes and Noble Bestseller list.

“Leanna’s book had enthralled me from the moment I first read it,” said Lewis, “I knew this would make a wonderful musical…the characters and epic nature of the story lend themselves to song, and I knew that Kenny shared my desire to incorporate sweeping cinematic themes with traditional musical theater styles.”

For more about Leanna Renee Hieber and The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker, visit www.leannareneehieber.com or www.dorchesterpub.com. The novel’s sequel, The Darkly Luminous Fight for Persephone Parker, is a May 2010 publication.

Anyway, thought you guys would be as excited to hear about this as I was. You can read my review of Strangely Beautiful... here.