'Gone With the Wind' to close

Trevor Nunn musical will have played 79 perfs

By DAVID ROONEY

Tuner `Gone With the Wind,' based on the Margaret Mitchell novel, never won over London's critics or audiences.

Tomorrow is not another day for the musical version of "Gone With the Wind," which will close June 14 after a short West End run marked by blistering reviews from London critics.

Trevor Nunn's production of the tuner will have played 79 perfs when it shutters. It was adapted by musical theater neophyte Margaret Martin from Margaret Mitchell's epic Civil War soap opera.

The show -- produced by Aldo Scrofani for Columbia Artists Theatricals of New York, London producer Colin Ingram and the Nederlander Producing Co. -- was clearly conceived with a subsequent Broadway berth in mind.

"Plans for a New York production are currently on hold, but in the meantime, we are pursuing various options that have been presented to us from interested parties worldwide," Scrofani said.

Despite a director with considerable experience wrangling mega-musicals like "Les Miserables," "Cats" and "Sunset Boulevard," the ambitious show was plagued by problems from the start. It played less than three weeks of previews -- an uncommonly short period for a large-scale new musical -- beginning April 5. There were substantial changes and cuts being introduced through the April 22 opening night and even after.

"Gone With the Wind" never picked up steam with audiences in London, which currently has a robust crop of hit musicals vying for ticket buyers' attention.