Babes in Arms: revival starring Rosie O'Donnell is planned for Broadway

Variety reports that a Broadway revival of the Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart's 1937 musical, Babes in Arms, starring Rosie O'Donnell as 'Patsy Barton,' is being planned.

No time table for the production is known, but the producers hope to have the details ironed out by the end of summer.

The musical, to be directed and choreographed by Randy Skinner, who was recently nominated for a Tony for his choreography of 'Irving Berlin's White Christmas,' will feature a new book written by Joe DiPietro - the musical's original book was written by Rodgers and Hart. DiPietro wrote the book for the Broadway musical 'All Shook Up' (2005) and for the off-Broadway musical, 'The Toxic Avenger,' currently playing at New World Stages.

The producers Gerald Goehring, Pat Addiss and Michael F. Mitri organised readings of the musical in New York in May 2009, which featured Rosie O'Donnell and Shuler Hensley. The paper reports that Rosie O'Donnell will star in the modest scale production which will feature a cast of about 15 and a single set.

Babes in Arms: A group of teenagers, whose parents are out of work vaudevillians, stage a revue to keep from being sent to work on a farm. Unfortunately, the show is a flop. Later, when a transatlantic French flyer lands nearby, they are able to attract enough publicity to put on a successful show and build their own youth center.

The musical features such classics as 'The Lady Is A Tramp,' 'My funny Valentine' and 'I Wish I Were In Love Again.'

This will be the first revival of Babes in Arms since it played in Broadway in 1937. That production was directed by Robert B. Sinclair and choreographed by George Balanchine, and played 289 performances.

It was made into a movie in 1938 starring Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney.