Hollywood's love affair with the London stage has deepened with
a rare public appearance by Robert De Niro at the launch of his
show based on the music of Queen. Speaking at a press conference
at the majestic Dominion Theatre on Tuesday, the notoriously private
De Niro said the £7.5m We Will Rock You was going to be "terrific".
The Godfather star's New York company Tribeca is the production
brainwave behind the musical - a futuristic adventure inspired by
and featuring 31 of the rock band's hits. De Niro has worked closely
with band members Brian May and Roger Taylor, as well as the comedian
Ben Elton, who wrote the script. Elton and the ageing rockers Taylor
and May were also at Tuesday's launch and the quartet made an incongruous-looking
group. At 58, the still suave De Niro was dressed in black leather
jacket and sported perfectly coiffed greying black hair. Beside
him, Taylor and especially May, with his sky-high curls, were still
evidently hanging on to their musical youth. Bespectacled Elton,
meanwhile, though growing old gracefully, still came across as the
token clown.
But, the purpose of the meeting was to fire enthusiasm for We Will
Rock You, which is not opening until May. And for that the group
had turned to the Hollywood production values and appeal of screen
legend De Niro. In true megastar style, De Niro arrived almost an
hour late. He then made a dramatic onstage appearance from the midst
of clouds of smoke. May, Taylor and Elton were by his side but the
story-hungry press were predominantly interested in the US star.
Asked why he had wanted to make We Will Rock You, De Niro's answer
indicated he was in a characteristically enigmatic mood. "It
was something I was interested in and knew it would be a great idea
once it was got right for a musical," he said simply. But he
told reporters that he neither particularly liked rock music nor
could he name a favourite Queen song.
26 marzo 2002 - © Rune Hellestad/CORBIS
The idea for the musical hit De Niro more than six years ago when
he met May and Taylor at the Venice Film Festival. It has taken
since then to get the production underway - a long time for even
the most elaborate show. But De Niro seemed perplexed by the suggestion
that production development should be anything but slow. "That's
how long things take," he said shrugging his shoulders and
giving a lopsided grin. "They go through a lot of changes and
stages of evolution." By rights, De Niro should know. He has
appeared in some of the most memorable and difficult movies in cinema
history, such as Taxi Driver and Raging Bull. On top of that, his
company Tribeca, founded in 1989, has become one of the liveliest
movie production houses in New York. One of Tribeca's most recent
productions is About A Boy, based on the book by Nick Hornby.
Like his musical collaboration with Queen, the project is quintessentially
British, starring Hugh Grant and made in the UK. And in bringing
his talents to London, De Niro has joined an illustrious line of
stars such as Nicole Kidman, Kevin Spacey and Daryl Hannah. He also
revealed that his daughter had spent time in the city working as
a DJ. But, asked if the rumours about him buying a flat in south
London were true, De Niro was adamant and quick to respond. "That's
absolutely untrue," he said, with the voice of a New Yorker
through and through. "I'm only staying for a full rehearsal,"
he concluded. "And then I'm flying straight back home."
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