ABC goes live with 'Young Frankenstein' and a 'Conners' episode tied to N.H. primary

PASADENA, Calif. – ABC's next live musical is "Young Frankenstein," based on the Broadway show adapted from the beloved 1974 Mel Brooks movie. And "The Conners" will air a live episode March 11 that incorporates the first presidential primary, happening that night in New Hampshire, into its story line.

ABC has yet to cast "Frankenstein," to be produced by Brooks, and did not specify an air date. But its most recent musical, "The Little Mermaid Live," was a commercial, if not critical, success, averaging 9 million viewers in November. 

The network made the announcements at the Television Critics Association Wednesday, a showcase for its winter and spring programming, which includes a one-hour series finale for hit "Modern Family" on April 8 and a May 14 series finale for "How to Get Away With Murder," which returns for its final episodes on April 2. 

The live "Conners" episode, performed separately for Eastern and Western time zones, will incorporate ABC News coverage into the episode, and comes just after the news division sponsors a New Hampshire debate. It finds Mark (Ames McNamara) "watching the results of the primary for a school report with Harris (Emma Kenney), who is apathetic to the electoral process and believes money’s influence in politics means real change is impossible," ABC says. The rest of the family disagrees on why people should vote, "including their working-class perspective that you may have to vote for a candidate you don’t love but one that will 'screw you the least.'”