RHYS BOWEN: I just came back from a few days in London. While we were there we wanted to go and see a show. We looked at the line up in the evening paper AND... we had seen every musical that was on. The Lion King, Mama Mia, Starlight Express, Wicked, The Book of Mormon... we had seen them all, and some time ago too. Which makes me wonder: where are the new musicals? Where is the next Andrew Lloyd Weber?
It seems to me that the only new musicals that have come out recently have been life stories of a famous singer, Tina Turner, Carole King etc and thus use their songs as the music. Where is the original music? Are people still writing it but nobody is willing to produce it?
When I think of the musicals i have liked the most: Les Mis, Phantom, The Sound of Music, West Side Story I think of their memorable numbers, the sort of music you go away humming to yourself. It seems to my elderly perception that there is not much hummable music around any more. When I was growing up the Beatles, Gerry and the Pacemakers all sang songs that stayed in your head in a pleasant way.
Audiences love to sing along, or at least to go out singing after the show. Think of that scene in Amadeus when the audience joins in an aria from Don Giovanni. They love to feel part of it. Maybe that's one of the reasons the Rocky Horror Picture Show is still around. And why the audience loves the sing along at the end of Mama Mia. We are not just observing, we are part of the story. It's great.
A few years ago daughter Jane and I went to see the musical of The Secret Garden. It was playing in San Francisco on a pre-Broadway run. The music was, how shall I put it, boring. Completely unmemorable. We came out singing songs from musicals we loved.
What is my favorite musical? I admired Hamilton, I admired Sondheim. Into the Woods is a tour de force. But they didn't touch my soul. Les Mis and West Side Story were both powerful and wonderful. Phantom was such an amazing spectacle. I loved Gigi, My Fair Lady, and Hello Dolly and I realize the I LIKE TO FEEL GOOD WHEN I GO TO A MUSICAL!
But if I had to choose one musical to take to a desert island with me I think it would be The Sound of Music. Such a sweet story, so many singable songs, and if it was the movie version then that Salzburg scenery that I actually know and love. When my daughter Jane did her junior year in Salzburg she and I visited all the Sound of Music sights. We walked along that gravel drive singing "I have confidence in sunshine..." I still smile when I think of it.
So what are you thoughts on musicals? What is your favorite? What do you wish they'd write?
I love musicals! It's hard to pick just one as a "favorite," but, along with the ones you've mentioned, Rhys, "Fiddler on the Roof" is one of those shows that I particularly enjoyed . . . .
ReplyDeleteIt’s brilliant, Joan, but so sad
DeleteTrue, but the music is so wonderful . . . .
DeleteSound of Music! Thanks for reminding me, I used to watch it every holiday season. Sometimes with my late MIL. And sometimes we'd have slice of delectable Sacher Torte from Vienna. Maybe I could learn how to make it myself, for this year's viewing...
ReplyDeleteOh ja. Sehr gut
DeleteI love musicals, also. When I was young I had a decent (and importantly for children's productions, LOUD) voice and generally landed leading roles. A few shows not mentioned above: Man of La Mancha, South Pacific, H.M.S. Pinafore, and Oliver! I can still sing most of the songs of all of these, in addition to The Sound of Music.
ReplyDeleteI have to say, when Hamilton came out I was astonished. Of course I, as a U.S. history teacher whose particular subject is the Revolution, loved it. But all the children in my middle school ADORED it. They knew it by heart. I will never forget going up to the cafeteria counter and having a sixth grader (I taught 7th and 8th grades, so he didn't know me yet except by sight), who was about to leave the counter, sing a line to me. Without skipping a beat, I sang the next line back to him, and we grinned at each other.
Similarly, imagine a group of 7th grade boys sitting raptly as I explained the meaning of the comma question in the Hamilton song Take A Break:
In a letter I received from you two weeks ago
I noticed a comma in the middle of a phrase
It changed the meaning, did you intend this?
One stroke and you've consumed my waking days
It says
"My dearest, Angelica"
With a comma after dearest
You've written
"My dearest, Angelica"
Perhaps never has a grammar lesson had such a devoted audience, though it must be said that when the puzzle was explained they looked a little squeamish to have been caught interested in romance. (Selden)
My grandkids knew all the lines from Hamilton. It was such a brilliant play and the fact that it introduced so many people to Hamilton and the period when our country was just forming.
DeleteFabulous!
DeleteI go for the lighter side. ANYTHING GOES, SOMETHING'S AFOOT, and the like/
ReplyDeleteMy son was in Anything Goes twice. We saw him in it in Florida. He was Billy/Bobby once and then Sir Evelyn He was fabulous as this as he took on his father’s upper class British persona!
DeleteI grew up on singable musicals: Oklahoma, Annie Get Your Gun, The King and I, South Pacific, Music Man. But the only current one I've seen is Hamilton.
ReplyDeleteI can still remember the words to all the songs in Oklahoma!
DeleteAll of the above. I’ve seen them all and can sing them all
DeleteI also knew all the songs, long before I was ever able to see any of these musicals. So beloved.
DeleteAm I one of the only people in America not to have seen Hamilton! ?
I love musicals, and The Sound of Music and West Side Story were two of my favorites, too. But I also liked Fiddler on the Roof, Oliver, The King and I, and Mary Poppins. I grew up on earlier musicals: Showboat, for one. Like Rhys, I love hummable tunes and I know tunes from all of those. I do miss them.
ReplyDeleteEdith, I liked Oklahoma, too! And I forgot to mention My Fair Lady. That, too. Sigh. I've missed most of the new ones, although we did see the Phantom of the Opera a few years ago. Not the same kind of music, though.
DeleteAh yes ... My Fair Lady. That is one of my all time favorites too along with The Sound of Music. But, all the others mentioned too! The one play I saw but never really liked as much was Phantom of the Opera - the fact that a young woman was taken and forced by her captor to marry him. But the music was fantastic.
DeleteI liked all of those you mentioned especially Oliver
DeleteI love all the old musicals. The most recent one I have seen was School of Rock when we went to NYC. I don’t really remember the songs, but we were wowed by the kids playing all the instruments. It was a great show.
ReplyDeleteThis is going to be long! Loved the movie version of SOUND OF MUSIC. I remember when they had an anniversary show about SOUND OF MUSIC, one of the fans the TV news ? interviewed was a lady who got cochlear implants so that she could hear the sounds from the musical SOUND OF MUSIC.
ReplyDeleteBefore the COVID pandemic, we used to go to SFonBroadway musicals all the time - every time they had sign language interpreters. We went to see MISS SAIGON. I remember we treated a young relative to her 10th birthday by taking ten of us to see WICKED with Kristin Chenworth (sp?) with sign language interpreters. The signers were slightly off stage or in a section where the deaf audience could see the sign language interpreters. There have been so many musicals over the years. I remember we saw TALLULAH with Kathleen Turner. Some of the theater were performances, not musicals, though, like the play about King Edward with the actor from Caroline in the City.
It’s like to see Miss Saigon. I somehow missed it, probably when we had young kids and no money for theater
Deletethat was a long time ago. I think it was around the same time as the publication of your first Evan Evans novel. We all cried. It was a very sad story.
DeleteMusicals were my gateway to live performance and to the opera. And to the words of wisdom from my “opera mentor”…”the worst live performance is better than the best filmed/recorded performance.” Elisabeth
ReplyDeleteYou always feel so alive and happy coming out of a thester
DeleteYes, Rhys, “alive” is the right word. My first opera was Otello, performed in English. The night of the performance the English Otello fell ill. So that role was sung in Italian, all the rest in English. While not the worst performance, the most confusing! Elisabeth
DeleteI was a huge Gene Kelly fan so I would watch AN AMERICAN IN PARIS or SINGING IN THE RAIN any time.
ReplyDeleteI liked both those musicals too. This post and the responses bring back so many lovely memories! Thank you, Rhys.
DeleteCamelot for me! Though I love many of the ones you’ve mentioned!
ReplyDeleteThe music is fabulous but so sad
DeleteThese are all great reminders that I will add to my “winter watch list” as we head into the dark months here in Maine. The Sound of Music is at the top of my list and I’d say at least one of the songs is in my head every week! My Favorite Things, 16 Going on 17… so sweet and fun! I haven’t seen any contemporary musicals. I saw Phantom in NYC around 15 years ago though. Unforgettable!
ReplyDeleteOhhh, how to choose? So hard and so much depending on mood. My Fair Lady for sure, Sound of Music, Phantom of the Opera. I hadn't thought about it because I'm not near a live theater, but you're right - where are the new musicals?
ReplyDeleteI loved Les Mis. The music still gives me chills. I haven't yet seen Hamilton (I can hear the gasps), but want to. But for singability, I have to go back to my long-time favorite, Oklahoma. I've never seen it live but as a kid, I watched the Shirley Jones/Gordon MacRae version a gazillion times. I can still quote the dialogue and sing every song.
ReplyDeleteIt was the first musical I saw. I also wore out the lP. But I was too young to understand the rape scene
DeleteAs was I. Years later, I was shocked when I watched it again.
DeleteI love every one of the musicals mentioned. please consider adding Brigadoon to the list.
ReplyDeleteIt's marvelous. Music and dance and very dated now but still marvelous.
DeleteCyd charisse - she was so graceful.
DeleteI've mentioned before that our neighbor is a former symphony bassist, and a fairly famous composer. He's written several modern operas that have only been performed once, sometimes twice. He is 83 now, and unlikely to write more; by contrast, there are few with his musical chops these days. As a teenager he played in Manhattan clubs, including sitting in with Frank Sinatra, and he numbered among his friends Doc Severinsen, Cleo Laine, and the actress Jessica Walters (they were classmates in Brooklyn). He was with the CSO for 30 years, and continued to play jazz in clubs until not that long ago.
ReplyDeleteFrank was given the musical freedom to create, and had the great fortune to have had mentors, including his very talented wife, who helped his projects see light. Some of the conductors of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra put on his operas and other pieces, and he still sells music worldwide--he just last night brought over a program from a Polish symphony that has his bio in it.
Today it is far, far more difficult to mount these shows, for a lot of reasons, but money is probably the biggest. There is a lot of competition for entertainment dollars, with sports and sport venues cutting a pretty big swath into musical endeavors.
It's too bad, too. I hate to think the only musicals we will ever have have all been created.
This is so interesting, Karen and money is a huge factor. My son was an actor in musical theater and we saw him all over the country. But not many theaters can afford live music or a chorus of 24 any longer. No live bands in nightclubs.
DeleteMy mother used to go out dancing three, sometimes four nights a week. You could do that, back in the day. People actually got dressed up for it, too. Now, I only know one place, in a town about 40 miles from here, that has live music and a dance floor. It's a Moose club!
DeleteI think the first musical that I saw was Annie Get Your Gun, followed by Oklahoma. We murdered that song all summer! The local Rotary club would put on a musical presentation with mostly all local actors for a week each spring. We attended most of them - circa late 60’s. Then came university and their production of Fiddler on the Roof – technically the musical did all the things wrong and yet it was so right – ending on a sad note – just not done. There was Hair and Godspell, and nosebleed seats for Cats – fabulous! Took our kids to Les Mis and Technicolour Dreamcoat to introduce them to live theatre – one was professional, one was local – it didn’t matter, the production and the music held the day.
ReplyDeleteI could not like Hamilton – didn’t know the history and didn’t like the genre of music, but all music is not for everyone. Love ‘Send in the Clowns’, but have no interest in seeing the show.
Anyone who loves Anne of Green Gables needs to go see the production in Charlottetown every summer. It was written in 1965, when I saw the first season. There have been several more visits and several different actors, and even though the presentations change, you can always belt out “Ice Cream” on the way home. It conjures up real ice cream with real cream, eggs and a crank churner – nothing tastes as good.
I’d never heard of the musical of Anne! Interesting
DeleteI never heard of a production in the US. I do not know the songs or the story.
DeleteNot surprised you are unaware of Alexander Hamilton’s story,. Foreign countries do not cover the details of the history of other countries.
Oh, Hair! I loved it, had the LO, long gone now, but it was irreverent and had several great tunes. You comment just implanted an ear worm, in fact!
DeleteTo the best of my knowledge, I have never seen a stage musical. And honestly, I have no desire to do so either.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I grew up with a mom who loved old movies and that would include movie musicals. Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, White Christmas and Singing in the Rain are the ones that come to mind immediately. The latter two are the ones I would say I liked the most.
Oddly enough, I think anything resembling original musical writing has come from TV in relatively recent years. You had that episode of the sitcom "Scrubs", most recently there was an episode of "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" and you can't leave out the masterpiece episode of "Buffy The Vampire Slayer" entitled "Once More...with Feeling". While the Star Trek songs weren't especially memorable in terms of walking around singing them, they fit the plotline perfectly. The same could be said for the "Scrubs" episode as well, though when I watch that episode I can actually sing along with the songs. As for the Buffy episode, I love those songs and wish I had a CD edition of them because I would play that all the time.
Do movie musicals do all that well at the box office? Because no matter how good the movie or memorable the songs, if they don't get big numbers, no one's going to make another one.
I don't know how the theater scene works so I can't say if straight up economics is why you don't see many, if any, new musicals.
I have to watch White Christmas every year. It’s fabulous
DeleteBy the way, I forgot to include The Sound of Music on my list of movie musicals I've seen. We used to watch it every year when it aired on network TV.
DeleteI love musicals. I’ve lost track of everything I’ve seen. The first one I saw in person was The Music Man, when I was eleven years old. It will always have a special place in my heart. I still love the music!
ReplyDeleteThe next play I saw was The Sound of Music, and that’s another one that I can never forget. I was twelve then.
Once when I was flying home from a conference Maria vonTrapp
was sitting across the aisle from me. She had given a talk at that same conference. I didn’t attend that one because it was at the same time as another talk I wanted to hear. There was a lot of turbulence; we were flying through some storms. I tried to read, but couldn’t concentrate on my book because of the turbulence. Maria sat there, calmly reading throughout the entire flight. She smiled at everyone who passed by whenever she looked up.
The last time I went to a musical was just before the pandemic. We’ve been talking about getting out to see a new one soon.
Wow! What an experience. Did everyone know who she was?
DeleteYes, I think most people knew who she was. I wish I had not been too shy to talk to her!
DeleteDebRo
What a cool story Deb.
DeleteIf you'd been in New York, you could have seen "Six", "& Juliet", "Water for Elephants" or "The Outsiders" so I think there are lots of new (or new-ish) musicals out there, and maybe it's just that London is in a bit of a lull right now?
ReplyDeleteThere are also some great shows in local theaters. Last year we saw "Redwood" (Idina Menzel) and "The Untitled Unauthorized Hunter S. Thompson Musical" at the La Jolla Playhouse. It's a long way from tryouts in San Diego to Broadway, but both were very good and might eventually make it.
I hadn’t heard of these apart from Six. My daughter in Phoenix sees the Broadway touring version of everything and adored Hadestown
DeleteAnd isn't Six a spinoff from Chicago?
DeleteSix is about the wives of Henry VIII. It's a British show that made its way across the pond and won a bunch of Tony awards, so I'm kind of surprised there wasn't a current production in London.
DeleteOh, yes. Thank you, Cathy! It sounds great.
DeleteCathy, you say it’s a long way from San Diego to Broadway, but La Jolla Playhouse (and the Old Globe in San Diego) have sent quite a few plays and musicals to Broadway. Most recently Outsiders started at LJP, but you can go back to Big River, Tommy and a number of other now famous shows that either debuted in San Diego or were the second stop before Broadway. — Pat S
DeleteIf you want to feel uplifted and entertained thoroughly by a Broadway musical, I highly recommend Come From Away, the story of the 38 planes that were rerouted to the small town of Gander in Newfoundland on 9/11 when they couldn't land in New York. With very little scenery and costumes, this ensemble of performers manages to surprise and thrill the audience every time. My son and I just saw it for the second time--earlier in regional theater in the Bay Area and a week or so ago the Broadway tour in Folsom, CA. I've never talked to anyone who didn't find it wonderful. Is the music memorable--well, one of the numbers is still in my head, but it is more continual music (much of it rousing) than showstoppers, and that's fine with me.
ReplyDeleteI am also partial to Company by Sondheim. I'll see it whenever I have the opportunity, and I have the DVD of the 2011 (I think) filmed presentation starring Neil Patrick Harris. The music is fantastic. I love almost everything by Sondheim. His song "Sunday" from Sunday in the Park with George is so beautiful, especially as sung by a plethora of Broadway stars in the recent film, Tick Tick Boom.
I think Lin-Manuel Miranda is the Sondheim for this age. My husband and I were fortunate to be able to see him in In the Heights just after it transferred to Broadway, and I've loved him and his music ever since. I bought the original cast album of Hamilton when it was released and probably cried through the first five numbers or so when I finally saw it in San Francisco.
I have been meaning to see that, Margo
DeleteMan of La Mancha was my first live musical theater experience (an excellent college production), but my favorite was Evita. Also particular to Oklahoma! because youngest sang the part of Curly his senior year of high school. An outstanding production! And love many of those mentioned here--Fiddler on the Roof, The Sound of Music. (Flora)
ReplyDeleteMy son was an actor in musical theater in several touring companies and we saw him several times. That was the best
DeleteOh, I could talk about this for days! My very first, I think, was Camelot, in Chicago, with Robert Goulet, and Richard Burton, and Julie Andrews, and Malcolm McDowell. Can that be? And then I was crying for four weeks or so— I must’ve been 12? But so many fantastic, fantastic musical – – all the ones you’ve named, and we’re talking only stage musicals, right? Not movies? Because this will take too long. Kismet, and West side story. All the ones you all have mentioned, but more recently, currently, Matilda, and The Six, and Urinetown (trust me!) and Hadestown, – – oh, I cannot forget Les Mis, and A Little Night Music in the classics. And oh my goodness, Wicked. I absolutely adore it. I know I have forgotten dozens of them, but this is such a great topic!
ReplyDeleteYou saw the best ever! I saw Julie in My Fair Lady opening week in London. A school friend and I lined up all night to get standing tickets!
DeleteOh, I wish I could have been with you!
DeleteA Little Night Music and the melancholy song that makes me cry, one line of which is Isn't it rich..."
DeleteSend in the Clowns
DeleteOh, yes, Evita! And I love Oklahoma, too, except, like Carousel, it’s beautiful, but a little bit disturbing.
ReplyDeleteI find Oklahoma disturbing too although the music is fabulous
DeleteMy nephew and I were just discussing this last night--he brought up Curly's duet with Judd. He said he didn't really think about it when they were performing, but now--how, he said, did they get away with that song in particular? And the other moments.... (Flora)
DeleteAll of the above are magical , Judy
ReplyDeleteThis question sparked a memory from 50 or so years ago. The first time I was really hooked on musicals was when I happened to see Brigadoon on TV. I was totally captivated by the score and the story. The reason I've enjoyed so many of the ones everyone has listed above is because of Brigadoon. -- Victoria
ReplyDeleteI performed the scores for Brigadoon back in High School. I still love the songs. Saw Cats on Stage, but my favorite is Company, the documentary of the cast getting ready for the performance, and also seeing the production where the cast also plays the instruments. Soundheim not enough words for his genius none.
ReplyDeleteHe is the BEST. Incredible.
DeleteWhat about Come From Away - the story of 911 and the flights landing in Gander. I watched a tv show of the production and loved everything about it from the low budget set, the shifting of actors to parts and of course the music. I would love to have seen the show live, but economics make it not possible. That said, I wonder how the ticket price break-down happens and what is designated for what. I fear too much money would be spent on T***** Master.
ReplyDeleteLOVE Come from Away! So absolutely wonderful...
Deleteoops - I see Margie just commented on Come From Away. It is heart-warming, and if you ever get the opportunity, there is a tv show about the real thing. The play is a real rendition of the people of Gander.
ReplyDeleteHank is the only one who has mentioned Carousel. Not only is it my favorite, it was also the favorite of Rodgers and Hammerstein, the composers. Almost every song from that show is a classic. I saw Shirley Jones performing in a regional production a few years ago. Although she was no longer the ingenue, Julie Jordan she still gave a wonderful performance.
ReplyDeleteOscar Hammerstein was a lyricist who was a poet. his songs always had a moral aspect to them such as You’ve got to be taught from South Pacific where he describes the way prejudice develops in children when they are taught to hate and fear people who are different from them.
Other favorites, especially for the music are Kismet, adapted from the music of Borodin, Showboat based on the novel by Edna Ferber. Man of La Mancha, Milk and Honey (Jerry Herman)
Many of the music being written now does not have the musicality or lyricism of the golden age of musicals written from the 30’s-60’s when you had composers such as R & H, Cole Porter, the Gershwins and Jerome Kern.
Stephen Sondheim was a protege of Oscar Hammerstein and though he later wrote both the music and lyrics, his first big show was writing the lyrics for West Side Story.
I particularly appreciated the lyrics for Sweeney Todd although I would rather listen to the show than watch it.
People used to be able to see a lot of new shows in try outs before they went to New York, but productions have become so expensive that they usually go directly to Broadway now for previews before the formal opening night. The shows have also become a lot more expensive for the audiences.
Both of these factors have contributed to the decline of the musical theater.
In the Boston area there are still touring companies of many of the established shows and I was able to see Carol Channing in Hello Dolly, Richard Kiley in Man of la Mancha, Anthony Newley in Stop the World I want to get off and Theodore Bikel in Fiddler on the Roof. He was the original Baron von Trapp in The Sound of Music.
La Gage aux folles hands down my favorite. Because, THE BEST OF TIMES is now
ReplyDeleteEvita, with Patti Lapone!
ReplyDeleteThere is nothing like a musical onstage. It's just magic. My son's first was a roadshow production of Guys and Dolls. It came to town and we went, while we were waiting for Phantom to come to town. I'm one of the few here who hasn't seen Hamilton either. Not for lack of trying! Remember how good movie music was years ago? What happened?
ReplyDeleteI really have to start with my son Kevin's connection to musicals. He was probably around five or six, but he had watched Oklahoma with Shirley Jones and Gordon MacRae with his sister and me more than once. We all three loved the songs in it, especially "Oklahoma" and "The Surrey with the Fringe on Top." Ashley had a skirt (if any of you remember the Spumoni clothes, it was that) that would twirl. Kevin would put it on and sing Oklahoma and twirl in the skirt. Of course, I loved it and sang along with him. My dear MIL thought it was awful that I'd let him put a skirt on. I also have a special affection for Oliver, as Kevin played Fagin in his high school production of it, and he had a great voice for speaking and singing. He and I also loved Music Man. Our favorite of all was Moulin Rouge, in the movie form with Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor. I will forever remember singing songs such as "Come What May" and "Your Song" with Kevin.
ReplyDeleteI have to mention Carousel mentioned by Hank and another person above. I remember watching it on TV when I was about twelve. Our family was watching it, and I was loving it, but when it got to the scene where Shirley Jones was pregnant, my father told me I had to leave the room. What? I did as he said, laughing inside all the way, and I did watch it in its entirety many times after that. Oh, Daddy, you could have some odd thinking from time to time. West Side Story and Camelot were probably my favorites when I was growing up. Oh, those wonderful songs from them. And, I can't forget South Pacific, "I'm gonna wash that man right out of my hair."
Sadly, I have never been to NYC to see a musical on the actual Broadway, but I'm still hoping. However, our local venue for live entertainment, Riverpark Center, has a Broadway series every year, and a friend and I have gone to these musicals for years now. My favorite so far has been Cole Porter's "Anything Goes." I would have loved to see Sutton Foster on the real Broadway in it. "Dear Evan Hansen" is the one I'm looking forward to seeing here this year.
After Saturday morning classes in Boston just before I entered college, I’d stop by the Colonial Theater for student rush tickets. My most memorable were (1) A Chorus Line (Marvin Hamlish music); (2) Dream Girls; (3) Godspell and (4) Angela Lansbury in Sweeney Todd.
ReplyDeleteYears later, we would see Angela Lansbury once again as she starred alongside Katherine Zita Jones in A Little Night Music on Broadway (Send in the Clowns).
Our favorite show on Broadway so far is Wicked.
In 2023, we were swept away with Boston performances of Come From Away and Into The Woods which had 13 of the 19 original Broadway cast members.
This past August, we saw another pre-Broadway show with Kristin Chenoweth in The Queen of Versailles. Fabulous!
In 2025, we can’t wait to see Audra McDonald as Mama Rose at the Magestic Theater on Broadway in Gypsy – The Musical with lyrics by Sondheim. (A few summers ago, we sat in the front row of the Provincetown Town Hall and experienced Audra singing. Her rendition of Climb Every Mountain from the Sound of Music brought tears to my eyes.)
Next on our 2025 list is Adam Lambert in Cabaret on Broadway. If you have not heard Adam live as we did at Great Woods a few years back, he is unbelievable.
Last on our list so far is Delia Ephron’s Left on Tenth (a romance) starring Peter Gallagher and Julianna Margulies. Thanks for the heads-up Hallie!
CABARET is a favorite as is PHANTOM OF THE OPERA and GODSPELL. SO many great musicals to choose from. Hub and I recently caught SOMETHING ROTTEN - what a treat!!! Shakespeare as a rock and roll type god vs. two wanabe playwrites - Highly recommend!
ReplyDeleteFor me it's a dead heat between two extraordinarily different musicals -- The Music Man (which also wins for best movie ever made) and Evita, which was just so incredibly powerful. And White Christmas trails by just a little bit.
ReplyDeleteSorry, I forgot one other (I suspect a lot of people are having that issue) -- The Fantasticks, Jerry Orbach was just incredible.
ReplyDeleteOh my....I just read your comment about the original Broadway Musical "The Fantasticks" with Jerry Orbach. I confess I never saw the original but I made mention in my comment below how one of my favorite songs was from that production called "Try to Remember". The simplest of lyrics but for me one of the most beautiful songs ever written. Especially now that I am in my "December years". It pulls at my heartstrings every time I hear it. My favorite arrangement of "Try to Remember" is sung by Josh Groban; simply beautiful.
DeleteDoesn't "favorite musical" depend, like favorite book, on what you need just then? Work of enduring gneius that delivers in every form - West Side Story, of course. But if you want sheer delight from music and dance and no real subject? I'd say Anything Goes or Kiss Me Kate! Can't beat Cole Porter. When my kids were little we saw some of the big hits of the day. Cats was fun, yes, but Chorus Line is the one will will last forever. And if you want something that will pull your mind out and get you thinking for a long time - Hamilton! ( And I'd add - yes, - Fiddler on the Roof and 1776) Or it could be a little home made show that would live forever - Come From Away. There are no limits, IMHO So I will end with the one dearest to my heart - my very first Broadway show, about age 15, a gift from my beloved generous aunt - Music Man.
ReplyDeletePippin! As well as A Little Night Music and Follies. But Pippin is my go-to. I can sing every song.
ReplyDeleteI want to see Six. We dance to some of the songs in the dance class I attend and I've fallen in love with them.
Some of the kings and queens of Broadway who created classic roles:: Alfred Drake, Richard Kiley, John Raitt, Jerry Orbach, Joel Grey, Robert Preston. Some of the queens: Mary Martin, Ethel Merman, Carol Channing, Angela Lansbury, Julie Andrews, Bernadette Peters, Patti Lapone, Chita Rivera, Rita Moreno, Barbara Cook and Audra MacDonald.
ReplyDeleteMany of them created the roles on Broadway but were overlooked when the musical was turned into a movie. They were replaced by non singers who were thought to be more well known for the screen, their voices were dubbed in-even Julie Andrews was replaced by Audrey Hepburn in the movie version of My Fair Lady. It wasn’t until she appeared in Mary Poppins that she became a box office draw.
I’m seeing American Idiot this week, one of my faves!
ReplyDeleteIt's clear after reading the above comments that the older musicals still leave an impression in our memory banks; i.e., The Sound of Music for example. Who could ever forget that wonderful and inspirational song "Climb Every Mountain". I also loved "West Side Story" and the Broadway musical "Funny Girl". I loved every song from that show and Barbara Streisand's voice always gave me the chills! My favorite musical, however, is "Cats" which was so much fun to attend especially when cast members would swoop above the audience or crawl between the rows of seats and "purr". The costumes were remarkable. If I were to pick one Broadway song that always moved me it would be "Try to Remember" from a very old Broadway Musical called "The Fantasticks". The lyrics are so simple but the words are so meaningful. Especially now because I am in my "December" years that song resonates even more so with me bringing back powerful and beautiful "September" memories.
ReplyDelete