With Miracle at St. Anna set to be released in movie theaters this September, Spike Lee has turned his attention to a project of a different ilk: He’ll be collaborating with the creators of Passing Strange (which opened on Broadway in February after its initial run at the Public Theater) to shoot, direct and coproduce a film version.

Passing Strange plots the journey of a young, middle-class African-American who leaves L.A. to live in Amsterdam. As Lee was quick to point out, his production won’t follow the lead of Chris Columbus’s Rent. “What we’re doing is really a hybrid. An example, a bad example, is Rent. They didn’t film the play, they made it a movie.… We’re going to try something that’s never been tried before.” Unlike Columbus, who used the original cast almost ten years later, Lee plans to shoot two shows this month in front of a regular Broadway crowd. He’ll also film two other performances without an audience, to get the cameras on stage for close-up work.

Lee, who saw the musical when it opened downtown, was smitten. “I saw it, and came back the second time with Wesley Snipes and said, ‘You gotta see this,’” he said. This is perhaps why Lee is keen to collaborate: “So often you see a play and it’s gone, unless you go to the Lincoln Center archive. But this piece of work is going to be documented.” In addition to current cast members and cowriters Stew and Heidi Rodewald, Lee will be working with cinematographer Matthew Libatique. The two have previously worked together on She Hate Me, Inside Man and, more recently, Miracle at St. Anna (Libatique was also the director of photography for Iron Man).

Lee was reluctant to reveal how he would put his imprint on the movie; when Stew was asked whether he’d be adding new songs, he seemed genuinely discombobulated. The cast members were keeping the details quiet too. It’s interesting to note, though, that when Lee was asked to direct Clockers (after Scorsese left to work on Casino), he took the script and completely reworked it, focusing on one narrative voice instead of two. He denies he’ll do anything so dramatic here, but it’s likely that Passing Strange will have the distinctive feel of a Spike Lee joint. With a nod to their recent feud, Lee was asked if Clint Eastwood might perhaps be called in to play a role. “Dirty Harry is kind of long in the tooth,” he said.

Passing Strange is now playing at the Belasco Theatre. Live performances to be shot at the matinee and evening shows July 19.