Song-and-dance show ‘Soul Train’ may boogie onto Broadway after Matthew Weaver gets rights

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FILE - This March 6, 2006 file photo shows Don Cornelius, the founder of "Soul Train" at his office in Los Angeles. Stage and film producer Matthew Weaver, who helped create “Rock of Ages,” has acquired the theatrical stage rights to the groundbreaking TV show and says he’s hoping to turn it into a show that attracts die-hard Broadway fans and those who usually avoid Times Square. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)

NEW YORK, N.Y. – The groundbreaking song-and-dance show “Soul Train” is chugging toward Broadway.

Stage and film producer Matthew Weaver, who helped create “Rock of Ages,” has acquired the theatrical stage rights to the TV show and says he’s hoping to turn it into a show that attracts both die-hard Broadway fans and those who usually avoid Times Square.

“Soul Train,” with its trademark animated train opening, provided a national, weekly showcase for R&B artists, black culture and fashion, and gave advertisers an entree to the black consumer market.

Don Cornelius started the music and dance show in 1970 in Chicago and served as its host until 1993. It aired in syndication from 1971 until 2006.

Weaver says he next will hire a writer and has no timeframe for Broadway.

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