Bastille star working on musical about week which inspired two literary classics

Bastille frontman Dan Smith is working on a coming-of-age musical centred on five historical figures, including Lord Byron and Percy Shelley.The upcoming production is based on the true story of the romantic-era writers and their famous stay at the Villa Diodati on the shores of Lake Geneva, with friends Mary Godwin, Claire Clairmont and Dr John Polidori.Young Romantics will centre around their week-long stay, during which Lord Byron suggested the group each write a ghost story, which inspired the creation of classic literary works Frankenstein and The Vampyre.Dan Smith is writing the music and lyrics for new musical Young Romantics (Ian West/PA)PA WireThe musical is said to be about “five complicated friends chasing creative and romantic freedom” and tells the tale of “one fateful week together that will have repercussions that reach us today”.Smith, 40, is best known for his role in Bastille, the award-winning pop band behind hits such as Pompeii, Flaws, Of The Night and Happier.The chart-topper is behind the music and lyrics for the upcoming production, and said: “The events of that summer are famously fascinating – this collision of huge, young personalities, stuck together inside a big house while storms rage outside – and the more you delve into the story, the wilder and more unbelievable it becomes.“Beyond the sex, fame, heartbreak, and horror stories lies a deeper exploration of youth on the edge of adulthood – full of hope, creativity, chaos and the desire to escape.“Our characters are trying to make sense of the world and themselves through art, all while confronting grief, trauma, inequality, and the pressure to conform.”Smith continued: “These events unfolded over 200 years ago but feel strikingly modern; the more we explore this story, the more it becomes a mirror to the world we live in now.“At the heart of Young Romantics are issues that feel increasingly pressing in 2026: freedom of speech, the right to love who you choose, gender equality, impossible beauty standards, self-representation and artistic integrity.“Our protagonists assert their agency and act on impulse, reminding us that people in the past were every bit as bold, conflicted and reckless as we are today.”Read MoreGrammy-nominee Smith has previously worked on screen compositions, including for the BBC’s Planet Earth III, which was a collaboration with world-renowned musician Hans Zimmer.Young Romantics is being developed by Melting Pot, with producers and founders Simon Friend and Hanna Osmolska among those working on the project.They said: “We are so thrilled to be working with Dan Smith on his exciting take on the Young Romantics story.“It has been an artistically invigorating experience.“With his band Bastille, Dan is one of the most distinctive voices in British music, and pairing it with a story so thrilling, mysterious and sultry is the kind of artistic creation that drives us.“Looking afresh at what might’ve happened on this fateful week in which two of the world’s most famous fantasy stories were brought to life, Dan promises to give British musical theatre a vital shot in the arm.”Further details about the production are yet to be announced.