Stephen Merritt to score off-Broadway production of Coraline

Coraline, the stop-motion character on which the stage production is based, watches rehearsals from backstage.

It's not quite U2 scoring the Broadway production of Spiderman, but there's a couple laughs in here somewhere.

Yes, the 3D stop motion masterpiece is headed to the stage, and yes, the most depressive man in all of pop music will be handling the tunes and lyrics.

Certainly, one must scratch the head-- the film's story was basically a vehicle for the outstanding stop motion. Will we we really care for the fate of poor Coraline when it's, you know, just some person standing there singing retooled Magnetic Fields songs?
Well, fortunately for us, most of Gimme Noise's fair readers won't get the chance to answer that pithy, pointed question, as the play won't be venturing any farther than New York's Lucille Lortel Theatre (though I'm certain some intrepid gadfly will be hardy enough to make the trip just to spite our little venomous jab).

Granted, the previewed tracks are pretty enticing stuff, and here's hoping that at least the cast recording will feature Merritt's cavernous baritone (the Debbie Downer won't be performing when the play opens in early May). If the critics can be believed (and, from the production pics, it's hard to believe they haven't been bought), the screen to stage leap hasn't hurt the Shrek franchise too much. We just can't wait to see what poor make-up artist is charged with the task of making some waifish young actress look like a bobbleheaded stick figure.