Just three months after an adaptation of Romeo and Juliet featuring music by the late Jeff Buckley began picking up steam, yet another William Shakespeare play is to be accompanied by the tunes of an iconic singer/songwriter. According to their official site, Tom Waits and Kathleen Brennan have approved the use of their songs for an upcoming Dutch production of Shakespeare’s Richard III.

Premiering in Stadsschouwburg, Amsterdam this September, theater production company Orkater have enlisted a group called the Sadists to score performances with “Misery Is The River Of The World”, “God’s Away On Business”, “I Don’t Wanna Grow Up”, “I’ll Shoot The Moon”, “Underground,” “The Part You Throw Away,” and other classic songs from the Waits/Brennan oeuvre. The group will be led by musical director Vincent Van Warmerdam.

“Just like Shakespeare did,” said Van Warmerdam, “Waits and Brennan incorporate poetry, provocation, seduction and irony in their songs. Their music illustrates, mirrors and strengthens Richard’s character.”

Not sure why two Jeff Buckley stories have caught my eye in as many days, but perhaps these come in threes and we’ll have one tomorrow, as well. Last May, we mentioned the concert premiere of Michael Kimmel’s adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, titled The Last Goodbye, which debuted at New York City’s Joe’s Pub to sold-out crowds. The event was—and still is—perhaps most notable because Buckley’s mother, Mary Guibert, authorized the use of her late son’s music, which she has seldom done since his death in 1997.

Now Variety reports (via Flavorwire) that the NYC premiere of The Last Goodbye was such a hit that a theatrical version is being prepped for the 2010-11 stage season.

Previously described as “part rock concert, part Elizabethan verse, [and] part 21st century musical,” Kimmel’s adaptation weaves Buckley songs, such as “Lover, You Should’ve Come Over” and “Eternal Life” into Shakespeare’s famous tragedy about star-crossed lovers who… oh, I better not give away the ending.

When I saw Hamlet set to the music of Radiohead at a local college once it was pretty awful, but I could kind of picture this: William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet has been made into a musical adaptation featuring the songs of Jeff Buckley and, most importantly, “with the permission of The Estate of Jeff Buckley.” That last part is a big deal because Buckley’s mother Mary Guibert has notoriously guarded her son’s legacy very closely.

Michael Kimmel’s adaptation, The Last Goodbye, will premiere next Monday (May 11) at NYC’s Joe’s Pub in the first of three performances. Here’s the show’s description from Buckley’s official site:

Created hundreds of years apart, the timeless work of two of history’s great poets collide in this visceral and moving world premiere theatrical event. Part rock concert, part Elizabethan verse, part 21st century musical, THE LAST GOODBYE features a cast of fourteen extraordinary young, up-and-coming actor-singers. Told through Jeff Buckley’s daring and soulful music, William Shakespeare’s romantic and violent tragedy is new yet again.