He brought in Winnie Holzman to write the musical’s script, who was most known for writing for television at the time. Schwartz found some unlikely inspiration when he started to adapt the book it is based on for the stage. Probably his best known work is “Wicked,” which after opening in 2003 is now the fifth longest-running show on Broadway, having been deemed " a cultural phenomenon" by Variety. When talking to BET in 1998 about the song’s popularity, she called it “a powerful ballad” and labeled Schwartz “a genius.” Not only does Schwartz have glowing things to say about the late Houston, but she returned the favor to him once during an interview as well. “She was a consummate professional, a great artist, and just delightful in my experience with her as a human being.” “Again, I've obviously heard rumors that she might be difficult to work with or she might have a bit of a diva personality, but I did not see that at all,” he revealed. That is so difficult to do, and she did it with such professionalism and such good humor.” Whitney was able to match and harmonize with her recording perfectly. “She matched exactly all that phrasing and all the vocal filigree and pyrotechnics that are such a specialty of Mariah's. “I was in the studio when Whitney recorded and I was so impressed with what a pro Whitney Houston was,” he said. Produced by DreamWorks in 1998, the animated film “The Prince of Egypt” featured music and lyrics by Schwartz, including the popular song “When You Believe.” The pop version, produced by Babyface and recorded by Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston, went on to become a commercially successful single, and snagged the Academy Award for best original song for Schwartz as well.īut Schwartz did work intimately with Houston on the track. But I’m excited my colleagues will be able to get back to work.” “It's been tough enough psychologically as a writer, just to maintain some kind of motivation, but at least I can do what I do without having to be in front of an audience. “It's been an incredibly difficult time, I think particularly for performers and musicians, directors, you know people who make their living when live theater is happening,” he said, adding that the show is slated to reopen in June 2021. Based on the 1998 DreamWorks animated film, "The Prince of Egypt" was a hit in London before shutdown and is slated to reopen in June 2021. The show also got to record a cast album, which was nominated for best musical theater album at the 2021 Grammy Awards, and is available now through Ghostlight Records. We just had the very beginning of momentum, and whether we'll be able to recapture that remains to be seen, but I feel so bad for shows that were supposed to open in New York, which never got to open at all.” “I feel with ‘The Prince of Egypt,’ we were fortunate that we got to open and had begun to build an audience and sales were going well. “It's been a really, really tough time for live arts,“ Schwartz, 73, told TODAY.
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