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Hands on a Hard Body… The Musical?


by David Ninh 2 Sep 2009 1:54 PM

Longview, Texas will soon get its moment to shine on stage. Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Doug Wright (who wrote the book for the Grey Gardens musical and hails from Dallas) has teamed up with lyricist Amanda Green (High Fidelity) to adapt Hands on a Hard Body into a musical. The 1997 cult doc follows residents of Longview as they compete […]

CTA TBD

handshardbody-99111Longview, Texas will soon get its moment to shine on stage. Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Doug Wright (who wrote the book for the Grey Gardens musical and hails from Dallas) has teamed up with lyricist Amanda Green (High Fidelity) to adapt Hands on a Hard Body into a musical.
The 1997 cult doc follows residents of Longview as they compete for a free truck — by standing upright with one hand on the truck. The contest ended after 77 hours. Wright told Variety, “What could have been a comical look at a local eccentric tradition and a send-up of Texas stereotypes became a powerful metaphor for the nature of success and failure in America.”
Can’t wait to hear the engaging musical numbers that will come out of this collaboration — or see the dance numbers. If you haven’t seen the doc, click here to watch the trailer for an early taste.
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