“How Deep Is Your Love,” the 1977 mega-hit by the Bee Gees, will be released as a single that will be part of an original cast recording of the Asian Tour of the stage musical version of “Saturday Night Fever.”
The Asian tour will have stops in Manila, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore and will star Brandon Rubendall who will play Tony Manero and Jenna Rubaii who will play his dance partner and eventual love interest Stephanie Mangano. The two will also perform the song on the musical’s official soundtrack (OST). The Manila leg, mounted by the Atlantis Theatrical Entertainment Group (Ateg) in close coordination with the Robert Stigwood Organization, will have performances from July 3 to 26 at the Theatre, Solaire Resort and Casino.
Everyone knows the song well. Originally intended for Yvonne Elliman (who later recorded “If I Can’t Have You) instead won an award for Best Pop Performance by a Group at the 20th Grammy Awards held in February 1978 and topped the Billboard Hot 100 on 24 December 1977 (becoming the first of six consecutive US number-one hits) and stayed in the Top 10 for a then-record 17 weeks. It also ranked number 375 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
In a 2001 interview the Bee Gees did for Billboard magazine, Barry Gibb reportedly said that “How Deep Is Your Love” was his favorite Bee Gees song.
Said Barry: “A lot of the textures you hear in the song were added on later. We didn’t change any lyrics, mind you, but the way we recorded it was a little different than the way we wrote in terms of construction. A little different for the better, I think, the title ‘How Deep Is Your Love’ we thought was perfect because of all the connotations involved in that sentence, and that was simply it.”
That iconic song will make itself heard again to a whole new generation of listeners once the Asian Tour of “Saturday Night Fever” takes off.
Marie Rose, Rafa Siguion-Reyna, Mikkie Bradshaw, Jamie Wilson and Carla Guevara-Laforteza are also joining the show’s 20-strong cast.
Broadway choreographer Vince Pesce, Tony Award-winning scenic designer David Gallo, original lighting designer of “Saturday Night Fever” on Broadway Paul Miller, costume designer Eric Pineda and musical director Ceejay Javier are also part of the creative team.
The Manila crew is working in close coordination with the Robert Stigwood Organization whose founder, Mr. Stigwood, produced the original Saturday Night Fever film and its various stage incarnations from 1998 to the present.
Director Bobby Garcia reveals: “We’re using a brand-new script (originally written by Nan Knighton, in collaboration with Arlene Phillips, Paul Nicholas and Mr. Stigwood) that brings back a lot of the grittiness and the coming-of-age in a tough world aspect of the movie. It’s edgy and exciting. It’s a completely conceptualized production.”
He is excited that the famous movie musical is being re-invented for a stage audience across Asia, and that “How Deep Is Your Love” will be heard again via this new cast recording of the stage version.
“We have a first-rate creative team and have assembled an amazing cast,” he says. “I think the quality of the show will speak for itself once it’s up on its feet. This production will be everything ‘Saturday Night Fever’ should be.”
For tickets and more information, call Ateg at (632)650 5144 or (63917) 8381534; visit TicketWorld at ticketworld.com.ph.
Like Ateg on facebook.com/Ategasia. TVJ
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