Movies into musicals

Gearing up for interviews for the Pasadena Playhouse's upcoming production of "Mask," a world premiere musical based on the 1985 Peter Bogdanovich film. Anyone remember a heavily latexed Eric Stoltz as the "inspirational" Rocky Dennis and pre Oscar Cher as his biker chick mother, Rusty?

Set to open on March 21, "Mask" is now a musical written by the movie's screenwriter Anna Hamilton Phelan. The songwriting team of Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil -- who gave the world the number "You've Lost That Loving Feeling" are the composing team. I can't imagine what song titles they could possibly come up with for a musical "Mask," but I plan to ask them. Watch this space -- and the Daily News -- for more "Mask"-ings as the opening draws nearer.

It's such SOP these days to raid the cinematic vaults for possible musical fodder. "Shrek" is coming down the pike. "Catch me if You Can." San Diego's La Jolla Playhouse will get the West Coast premiere of "Xanadu" in the summer. More immediately, the Old Globe will see Scott Bakula in "Dancing in the Dark," a stage adaptation of the Fred Astaire flick "The Band Wagon" opening mid March.

L.A.'s Center Theatre Group, meanwhile, will premiere the musical of "9 to 5" in the fall with a score by Dolly Parton and a more than respectable cast of Stephanie Block, Megan Hilty, Allison Janey. and Marc Kudisch. Joe Mantello directs. Mantello, Block and Hilty are graduates of the not-a-movie-to-musical smash "Wicked."

Like I said, I get bemused by all these screen to stage projects...no, you don't really need an original idea to hit big. And I get even more bemused by the ones that started out as movies, become musicals and then RETURN TO THE SCREEN AS MUSICALS. I give you: "The Producers" and "Hairspray."

Countless producers out there have undoubtedly snapped up the stage rights to every movie under the sun. Still, I wonder what kind of a play the other "Mask" movie would make -- the one with Jim Carrey?

Time, no doubt, will tell.