Gorillaz "Monkey" Musical Coming To NYC

While Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett are currently not speaking to each other, one of their projects is about to come stateside.

Monkey: a Journey to the West is a theater production that was scored by Albarn and designed by Hewlett. Anybody that is a fan of the Gorillaz will see influences from the duos band. The show is scheduled to run at the David H. Koch theater 27 times, running from July 6 to 28th. The show has only played once in America, at the Spoleto Theater festival in South Carolina in 2008. Nigel Redden, the Lincoln Center Festival’s director, expressed his excitement about the show coming to NYC, saying to the New York Times, "It sold more tickets than any other single event in the 36-year history of Spoleto,". He was again quoted as saying "But it’s never been in New York and to some extent, many artists feel their work has not premiered in the U.S. until it has premiered in New York."

Monkey: Journey to the West is based around an ancient Chinese folk tale about a Chinese monk that journeys from China to India in search of sacred Bhuddist scriptures. The 100-minute program combines traditional theater with cartoons, acrobatics, and martial art. The official sound track was released in 2008 and can be found here

Tickets go on sale on April 8th. Scroll down for a complete schedule of dates.

Monkey: Journey to the West @ The David H. Koch Theater:

July 6 @ 8 p.m. (preview)
July 7 @ 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. (previews)
July 9 @ 8 p.m.
July 10 @ 8 p.m.
July 11 @ 8 p.m.
July 12 @ 8 p.m.
July 13 @ 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.
July 14 @ 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.
July 16 @ 8 p.m.
July 17 @ 8 p.m.
July 18 @ 8 p.m.
July 19 @ 8 p.m.
July 20 @ 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.
July 21 @ 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.
July 23 @ 8 p.m.
July 24 @ 8 p.m.
July 25 @ 8 p.m.
July 26 @ 8 p.m.
July 27 @ 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.
July 28 @ 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.