Weather 
Theatrical licensor Music Theatre International announced the licensing availability of the Tony-nominated musical, Girl from the North Country.
Written by celebrated playwright Conor McPherson and featuring Tony Award-winning orchestrations by Simon Hale, Girl from the North Country reimagines 20 legendary songs of the iconic Bob Dylan as they’ve never been heard before, including ‘Forever Young,’ ‘All Along The Watchtower,’ ‘Hurricane,’ ‘Slow Train Coming,’ and ‘Like A Rolling Stone.’
It’s 1934 in Duluth, Minnesota. We meet a group of wayward travelers whose lives intersect in a guesthouse filled with music, life and hope. Nick Laine is the head of the family, trying to keep his struggling boarding house afloat while caring for his mentally unwell wife Elizabeth, pregnant daughter Marianne and wayward son Gene. Guests come and go to the boarding house, bringing their own individual woes to the group while the specter of a global depression looms heavy on them all.
The production premiered at The Old Vic in 2017 and then transferred to London’s West End before making its North American premiere Off-Broadway at The Public Theater in New York in 2018. Girl from the North Country made its Broadway premiere at the Belasco Theatre, beginning previews on in 2020.
Girl from the North Country won the Outer Critic’s Circle Award in 2019 for Outstanding New Broadway Musical and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album. The show received seven Tony Award nominations in 2022, taking home the prize for Best Orchestrations.
Critics praised the show, with The New York Times calling it ‘Profoundly beautiful. This ravishing and singular musical hears America singing,’ with The Chicago Tribune proclaiming ‘The beguiling and beautiful new show is audacious and arresting, making the obvious case that Bob Dylan was one of the great poets of the 20th century.’
Conor McPherson remarked, ‘I’m delighted that MTI will be licensing Girl from the North Country, making it available for a wider audience and shepherding its future life. Creating this show has been a very special journey full of surprises. From the moment Bob Dylan’s management approached me, entrusting me with his magical songs, through to our world premiere at the Old Vic and our Broadway opening, Girl from the North Country has constantly surpassed our wildest expectations. It’s been a privilege to work with so many great artists along the way and to make so many wonderful friends. I look forward now to seeing artists around the world get the opportunity to work with MTI and make this show their own.’
‘This musical is a magnificent blending of Conor McPherson’s moving and darkly humorous boarding house drama with Bob Dylan’s incredible songs. Far from a stereotypical jukebox musical, Girl from the North Country is a work of art that demands to be seen and heard. Thankfully, so many audiences have already seen the show on Broadway and on tour and now many more will have the chance to do so on stages around the world,’ said Drew Cohen, President and CEO of MTI.
A live capture of the Broadway performance is currently available to livestream here.
Licensing and additional information about Girl from the North Country can be found here.
ABOUT MUSIC THEATRE INTERNATIONAL
Music Theatre International (MTI) is one of the world’s leading theatrical licensing agencies, granting theatres from around the world the rights to perform the greatest selection of musicals from Broadway and beyond. Founded in 1952 by composer Frank Loesser and orchestrator Don Walker, MTI is a driving force in advancing musical theatre as a vibrant and engaging art form.
MTI works directly with the composers, lyricists and book writers of these musicals to provide official scripts, musical materials and dynamic theatrical resources to over 100,000 professional, community and school theatres in the US and in over 150 countries worldwide.
MTI is particularly dedicated to educational theatre, and has created special collections to meet the needs of various types of performers and audiences. MTI’s Broadway Junior shows are 30- and 60-minute musicals for performance by elementary and middle school-aged performers, while MTI’s School Editions are musicals annotated for performance by high school students.
