Elton John says songs for ‘Devil Wears Prada’ will be ‘modern’

Elton John is penning the songs for the upcoming “Devil Wears Prada” stage adaptation and it’s certainly “groundbreaking.”

The 75-year-old singer revealed that the tunes for the show will surprise fans, calling it “modern” in a new interview with People.

“It’s one of my favorite films and the subject matter in the film screams out for music, as well,” John said. “But I just thought, ‘You have to have characters that you can write [songs] for, and you have to have a backdrop which can inspire you musically,’ and the film does.”

The “Rocketman” said he’s enjoyed writing 20 songs for the show alongside writing partner Shaina Taub (“Twelfth Night,” “As You Like It”).

The interview also included glimpses of John singing three of the show tunes, including “Dress Your Way Up,” “When a Legend Is Born” and, of course, “The Devil Wears Prada.”

“The lyrics are so brilliant because it sounds like I’ve been to enough fashion shows in my life to know that it’s the excitement of when you see something new and you see something great, and you’re there and you can feel the excitement within the crowd and you know that something special has come,” he said of “When a Legend Is Born.”

“It’s like going to see a rock concert,” he added.

“The Devil Wears Prada: The Musical” is based on the cutthroat fashion novel by Lauren Weisberger, and the cult-classic 2006 movie starring Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, and Meryl Streep.

The musical’s cast will be led by Tony-winner Beth Leavel as Miranda Priestly and Taylor Iman Jones as Andy Sachs, characters who were respectively played by Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway in the film.

Costars include Javier Muñoz as Nigel Owens, Christiana Cole as Lauren Hunter, Megan Masako Haley as Emily Charlton, Tiffany Mann as Kayla Ward, Michael Tacconi as Nate Angstrom and Christian Thompson playing Christian Thompson, with whom he shares the same name.

An official synopsis for the show reads, “Runway Magazine. The supreme authority of the high-fashion world, and the new home of assistant Andy Sachs. It’s a position a million people would kill for, but under the sharp stilettos of Runway’s legendary Editor-in-Chief Miranda Priestly, the job is no dream. Up against Miranda’s blistering leadership and stratospheric expectations, Andy is pushed to the edge, forced to choose between her career and her own happiness.”

Audiences can see the show from July 19 through Aug. 21 at Chicago’s James M. Nederlander Theatre.