David Byrne Has Written A Musical About Joan Of Arc

Talking Heads founder David Byrne has announced his next project is a theatre production based on the life of historical figure and martyr Joan Of Arc in a statement on his website casually titled 'Well Folks, I've Written Another Musical'.

No big deal.

Byrne explains the story's general appeal as being due to its status as a tale "everyone sort of knows, or knows something about, anyway", but particularly because "everyone certainly knows how it ends, which I like — it means that everything that happens will feel like an irrevocable tragic advance toward a preordained ending".

The musical will be, he says — like its predecessor Here Lies Love — "almost all contemporary music with very little spoken text, though this time around the music is more anthemic and 'spiritual' than the clubby disco grooves of Here Lies Love". Those aren't the only connections the two works share, either.

"The main character in both pieces is a well-documented historical figure," Byrne wrote. "In fact, Joan's trial was the first to be so well documented — so there was a lot of that trial's testimony to draw on. (There was another trial, as well — one that involved a lot of oral history from those who knew her.) There was actually a lot of primary research to work with!

"On stage, imagine a singer — a contemporary young woman — backed by her inspired band, ultimately immolated at the end of her concert."

Joan Of Arc's status as an icon of history and Christianity has endured for hundreds of years, and Byrne says that it's a "completely relevant" story even today.

"Why has this story endured over centuries and been made into so many plays and movies?" Byrne mused. "Because it's about someone — a nobody, a teenage girl — who inspired others to act, to overthrow their oppressors and take charge of their lives.

"She transforms from an innocent, into an androgynous warrior, and finally a martyr. Joan's story is about the power of the individual to make a difference and (for me) the hubris and sometimes oversteps that often go along with that."

Byrne has conscripted many of his Here Lies Love collaborators for the technical side of the musical, with returning crew members including director Alex Timbers, costumer Clint Ramos and lighting director Justin Townsend, as well as Let The Right One In alum Steven Hoggett on movement and Christopher Barreca (Chronicle Of A Death Foretold) creating the set.

You'll have to go to the US to be able to see the musical, though — it will open at The Public Theater in New York City. So… there's that.

Read Byrne's full comments about the musical at his website.