“Craig would have loved it” was a common refrain heard in the lobby of the Television Academy’s Wolf Theatre on Sunday night at the conclusion of Thespians Go Hollywood, a tribute to the life and work of the late prolific film, TV and Broadway producer Craig Zadan. Not only would he have loved it, he could have produce…

NBC’s Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert was a big winner on night two of the Creative Arts Emmys and as each win was announced, there was an outpour of love and praise for the late great Craig Zadan, who served as executive producer. The live musical telecast based on Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Broadway smash is…

Jesus Christ Superstar Live In Concert took home the Emmy for Outstanding Variety Special Live, inducting not one, not two but three more people into the EGOT family: Tim Rice, Andrew Lloyd Webber, and John Legend. Rice, Webber, and Legend (who also starred in the live production) took the stage to claim their spot in…

Craig Zadan, a prolific producer of movies, television and Broadway musicals, including the Oscar-winning Chicago, Gypsy, Annie, Cinderella, Steel Magnolias, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, five live musicals on NBC and three Oscar telecasts on ABC, has died unexpectedly. He was 69. "It is with…

NBC has set the counterculture classic Hair Live! as its live musical presentation next spring. Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, who have executive produced all of the network's live musicals since The Sound of Music revived the genre in 2013, will do so again. Hair Live! will be produced by Universal Television, MGM…

A new musical version of classic Billy Wilder comedy Some Like It Hot is coming to Broadway in 2020, with a score by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, who won a Tony for their work on Hairspray. The show is from the Shubert Organization and producers Craig Zadan & Neil Meron, who acquired the rights to the 1959 film…

EXCLUSIVE: Fox 2000 emerged from a bidding battle that resulted in a substantial seven-figure deal for an untitled original musical fantasy about Hans Christian Andersen. It’s the first original musical from composer/lyricist Stephen Schwartz since Wicked, and it will be scripted by David Magee, the Life of Pi scribe…

In a competitive situation, ABC has landed The Real Fairy Godmother, a single-camera comedy starring Kristin Chenoweth and executive produced by Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, which has received a put pilot commitment. Written by Alan Zachary & Michael Weiner, with ‘Til Death creators Cathy Yuspa and Josh Goldsmith…

In a competitive situation, Amazon has landed for development a drama series project from  John Stamos and producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron (Hairspray Live), which chronicles the fame and excess of daytime soaps in the 1980s. Universal TV, where Zadan and Meron are under a deal for series and live events, is the…

Fox has given a script commitment plus penalty to hourlong semi-autobiographical hip-hop dance drama Take It From The Top (working title) from top choreographer Fatima Robinson, producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron and Universal Television. Written by NCIS: LA co-executive producer Joe Wilson and Abdul Williams, who…

A fan of Hairspray in all its myriad adaptations over the years, on stage and on screen, Hairspray Live! costume designer Mary Vogt faced new challenges when called upon to give her one take on the beloved property. With the intense and very involved choreography on display in NBC’s latest live theater production—from…

ICM Partners has signed prolific film, TV and theater producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron. Zadan and Meron are behind NBC’s live musical franchise, launched by the highly rated The Sound Of Music Live!, which was followed by Peter Pan, The Wiz and Hairspray. At NBC, the duo has live productions of Jesus Christ Superst…