A stage version of Disney’s “Hercules” is in the works because he put the glad in gladiator

After celebrating its 20th anniversary last month, Disney’s Hercules is being made into a Broadway play, and it all sounds pretty heroic to us.

Of course, Disney has had a string of Broadway hits over the years based on their iconic animated movie musicals — from The Lion King, which opened in 1997, to the recent stage version of Aladdin, which was nominated for five Tony Awards. We’re pretty much hoping that all our fave Disney musicals get the Broadway treatment in the future (we’re looking at you Pocahontas).

That’s why we’re thrilled to learn that Hercules is the latest movie getting the stage treatment.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yOL-EJZjmp0?feature=oembed

According to a new interview given by musical maestro Alan Menken, the songwriter behind Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, The Little Mermaid, Pocahontas, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame, he’s been hard at work on the Hercules adaptation.

Here’s how the news came out: In the interview with The Orange County Register, Menken was quizzed about those songs that didn’t quite reach the lofty heights of “A Whole New World” and “Colors of the Wind.”

“I love Quasimodo (from The Hunchback of Notre Dame). I thought it was a powerful stage show with a very complex protagonist,” he responded. “I’ve loved all of our protagonists: Aladdin, Belle and Jasmine, and Hercules.” 

He went on to say that he felt that one of his movie musicals might just surprise people.

“I have a very strong belief like Newsies [which was critically panned but successfully brought to Broadway], Hercules is going to have a moment that will surprise people,” he added, before dropping this bomb:

"Actually, I’m working on a stage version of Hercules.

Okay, this totally fills us with joy. While it might not have been the runaway commercial success of Aladdin, we’ll always have a pace in our hearts for Hercules. What’s more, we can imagine that the staging for the musical would be pretty inventive, too.

Unfortunately, we don’t know any more details about the upcoming adaptation, and given that Menken is also working on the live-action Little Mermaid remake, and the live-action Aladdin remake, we’re not sure when we’ll see Hercules on stage. However, we’re excited to see just how it all comes together!