Broadway writer of ‘& Juliet’ builds show with huge pop hits

By MARK KENNEDY
AP Entertainment Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Playwright David West Read and the team behind the Broadway jukebox musical “& Juliet” have mixed high and low art. They’ve taken an original story using “Romeo and Juliet” as a launch pad and mixed in some of the biggest pop hits of the past few decades sung by Britney Spears, Celine Dion, NSYNC, Ariana Grande, Katy Perry, Jon Bon Jovi, The Weeknd, Justin Timberlake, Pink and Backstreet Boys. The connection between the songs is Swedish super-producer Max Martin, who has had a hand in writing such hits as “Since U Been Gone,” “Roar,” “Larger Than Life,” “That’s The Way It Is” and “Can’t Stop the Feeling,”