‘Little Miss Sunshine\' Musical Heading to Second Stage Theater

Sara Krulwich/The New York Times William Finn

A musical adaptation of “Little Miss Sunshine,” the Oscar-nominated film about a dysfunctional family traveling to a child beauty pageant, will open the 35th season of Second Stage Theater in October, the Off Broadway company announced on Wednesday.

The show is the latest collaboration of the Tony Award winners William Finn, who has written the music and lyrics, and James Lapine, the book writer and director. They worked on the musicals “Falsettos” and “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” which was produced at Second Stage in 2005 before moving to Broadway that spring.

“Little Miss Sunshine” has also been mentioned as a Broadway possibility, given the talents involved, the high name recognition of the movie, an out-of-town production of the musical at La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego in 2011 and the involvement of Broadway producers in helping shepherd the show's development, most recently Beth Williams and Barbara Whitman. But Carole Rothman, artistic director of Second Stage, said on Wednesday that there were no plans for Broadway after the run at Second Stage, where “Little Miss Sunshine” is scheduled to begin preview performances on Oct. 15 and open in mid-November.

Asked why the show was going to Second Stage instead of Broadway, Ms. Rothman said: “I've sometimes been compared to a dog with a bone. I really thought this piece would be a perfect match for Second Stage. Whatever else was going on with the show, I was fierce about trying to get it here. I try to tune out the noise of the theater business and just focus on getting things that are right for us. This time we won.”

After the La Jolla production, which drew mixed reviews, the creators overhauled “Little Miss Sunshine” in ways that turned the musical into a good fit for Second Stage, Ms. Rothman said.

“The original concept had more to do with the Volkswagen bus trip, which we couldn't really fit on our stage, but the show was really been retooled to focus on the family,” she said. “There are only about three songs left from the La Jolla version. Once they didn't need a big bus, we were like, ‘C'mon guys, let's do it here.'”

A closed-door reading of the latest version of the show was held this spring, with the Tony nominee Sherie Rene Scott and the Tony winners Christian Borle and John Larroquette in lead roles. Those actors will not be in the Second Stage production, Ms. Rothman said. Casting is now under way.

Ms. Williams and Ms. Whitman, in a statement, said that they were providing some financial support for the Second Stage production and would be “keeping a close eye on it,” but had no comment about a possible Broadway transfer.