EXCLUSIVE: The Baby-sitters Club: A New Musical based on Ann M. Martin’s book series that inspired the 1995 film and two TV series, will make its world premiere this spring with Center Theatre Group at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Los Angeles.
Previews for the four-week run will begin on May 6, 2027, ahead of its May 16 opening. The dates and venue were announced today by the producing team, which includes Mountain A, the production company co-founded by Oscar-winning actor Natalie Portman.
“The Baby-sitters Club was a formative part of my childhood, as was musical theater, and I feel so lucky to get to be part of bringing these two worlds together,” Portman said. “I can’t wait to share the joy these characters brought me as a kid with audiences this spring.”
Deadline previously announced the development of the project with a book by Kate Wetherhead (The Devil Wears Prada), music and lyrics by Mark Sonnenblick (KPop Demon Hunters), and direction and choreography by Annie Tippe (Octet).
Casting for the project will begin soon, with The Telsey Office handling in New York and Henry Russell Bergstein Casting in Los Angeles.
In addition to Mountain A – which was co-founded by Portman and Sophie Mas – producers will include TWTheatricals; Riva Marker for Linden Productions (Stereophonic); Naia Cucukov Richards & Lucy Kitada (Netflix’s The Baby-sitters Club series); Peter Richards for Working Barn Productions; and Center Theatre Group. Co-producers are Gregg Arst and Laura Kaufmann of Tanna Entertainment, and Mickey Liddell and Pete Shilaimon of LD Entertainment.
The musical reimagines Martin’s book series and features characters Kristy, Mary Anne, Claudia and Stacey who, at 25 years old, return to Stoneybrook for an overdue reunion.
The synopsis: “As old friendships are rekindled and long-buried tensions resurface, the women find themselves confronting the grown-up questions that define this chapter of their lives: who they are, what they want, and whether the lives they’ve built are the ones they truly imagined for themselves. At the heart of their journey is a reminder that, even as we grow and change, friendship can be a powerful source of strength and support—and that we don’t have to navigate life’s challenges alone.”
“We’re creating something that is big hearted and timeless, while honoring what people love about The Baby-sitters Club,” said Linden Productions and TWTheatricals in a joint statement.
Martin’s book series is one of the most successful children’s book line in publishing history with more than 200 million books in print worldwide. Launched by Scholastic in 1986, the series was originally conceived as just four books – Kristy’s Great Idea, Claudia and the Phantom Phone Calls, The Truth About Stacey, and Mary Anne Saves the Day – but ultimately expanded to more than 250 titles and four spin-off series.
Adaptations included the 1990 HBO television series, the ’95 feature film from Sony Pictures, and, most recently, the critically acclaimed 2020-21 Netflix series.