LONDON, Jan 30 – A planned stage adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s novel Coraline has been cancelled following allegations of sexual misconduct against the author.
The Guardian reported that in a joint statement yesterday, event venues Leeds Playhouse, Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh, Birmingham Rep, and Home Manchester announced they would not proceed with the performance.
“After careful consideration, we feel it would be impossible to continue in the context of the allegations against its original author. Ticket holders have been contacted directly via email,” they reportedly said.
The musical was scheduled to run at Leeds from April 11 to May 11 before touring to Edinburgh, Birmingham, and Manchester.
Coraline, published in 2002, follows an 11-year-old girl who discovers a portal in her new home leading to an alternate reality inhabited by eerie doppelgängers of her parents.
The story gained widespread popularity in 2009 with a stop-motion animated adaptation directed by Henry Selick.
The cancelled musical adaptation was written by playwright Zinnie Harris with music by composer Louis Barabbas and was to be directed by James Brining.
Gaiman has been accused of sexual misconduct by nine women. The allegations first surfaced last July when Tortoise Media reported on claims of sexual assault by two women.
This month, entertainment online magazine Vulture published an investigation detailing accusations from four additional women, including claims of nonconsensual BDSM.
Gaiman has denied the allegations, stating on his website that he has “never engaged in nonconsensual sexual activity with anyone.”
