Live Aid took place in both Philadelphia and London’s Wembley Stadium simultaneously on July 13, 1985. The concert featured some of the most iconic acts in modern music history. The live broadcast of the concert reached more than a billion people and raised millions of dollars for famine relief in Ethiopia. Additionally, the show set the mold for future charitable concert events. Now, the iconic charity concert will become a stage musical.
Videos by American Songwriter
The musical, titled Just for One Day, will run from January 26 to March 30 at London’s Old Vic Theatre. The soundtrack includes songs from Queen, Sir Elton John, Sting, Sir Paul McCartney, and U2, according to BBC.
[RELATED: Remember When: Queen Performed a Momentous 20-Minute Set at Live Aid]
Bob Geldof, one of the organizers of the original Live Aid spoke to BBC about the musical. Geldof told the outlet that the show won’t feature actors pretending to be iconic singers or musicians. “This isn’t a tribute thing. I wouldn’t have anything to do with that. So, there isn’t a person dressed up as Freddie [Mercury] wearing a crap mustache. The songs drive the drama along,” he told the publication.
The show, which takes its title from a line in the David Bowie classic “Heroes,” will give attendees a look behind the scenes of the event. It will also feature a love story inspired by true events. “The story is based on actual testimony from the day,” Geldof revealed. “It’s real people telling their story throughout this,” Geldof continued calling Just for One Day “complex theatre.”
John O’Farrell, writer of the Mrs. Doubtfire musical, and Luke Sheppard, director of & Juliet, co-created the show. Initially, the duo doubted that Geldof and the Band Aid Charitable Trust would tell them “no.” But they pitched it anyway.
“They came to me and said, ‘We know you are going to say no, but we want to do it because our dads have never stopped talking about this day. And we think it’s theatre,” Geldof recalled.
Intrigued by the concept, Geldof and other Band Aid Trustees attended workshops of the musical. They wanted to make sure they liked what they saw before giving it their stamp of approval. Geldof recalled that what they saw blew them away. “There wasn’t a dry eye in the house,” he said.
As a result, the Band Aid Charitable Trust gave O’Farrell and Sheppard their blessing to make the musical. The Trust will receive 10% of every ticket sale.
Leave a Reply
Only members can comment. Become a member. Already a member? Log in.