The musical had a developmental staging at the Goodspeed Musicals May 13-June 6, 2004, with most of the Broadway cast, except for Manley Pope in the lead role of Chad. Christopher Ashley directed, with choreography by Jody Moccia. The musical had a tryout in Chicago at the Cadillac Palace from December 19, 2004, through January 23, 2005. After the tryout, changes were made to the finale and to add "a more specific instrumental and vocal voice" for Chad. The characters and plot twists in the musical were inspired by William Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing", "Twelfth Night", "As You Like It" and "A Midsummer Night's Dream".