Playbill: Broadway Backwards has been flipping the script on the musical theatre canon for 20 years, transforming beloved showtunes into bold celebrations of visibility, joy, and pride. Across two decades, familiar lyrics have taken on new meaning, fueled by daring storytelling and pure theatrical electricity.
2 comments:
This is the first time I am exposed to Broadway Backwards, and it took me some time to figure out what this annual event is about. And it turns out to be so interesting that our industry is constantly embracing and inclusive with more diverse people. I love how the shift of perspective in beloved show tunes into queer anthems. I remember we were looking into Trifle during our Foundations of Drama I class, and we came up with the question of what would be different if this story were told by Minnie or by any of the women characters, but not men guiding the whole thing. I feel like learning more about the character when I am in his/her shoes while watching a show, so as the narration style shifts, the story we now know also changes. After reading about these 7 legendary shows, I have a list of unwatched shows piling up.
It’s so cool to see the different scales Broadway Backwards uses to create opportunities for representation and great entertainment. Supporting Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS is such a great cause to do good things with theatre while also catering to audiences, which brings in more support for their cause! “How it Ends” with Joy Woods, for example, is a much smaller production than “Listen” with Jordan Fisher and John McGinty. Both of these empower their actors, staging some really incredible performances. This in turn keeps interest high for Broadway Backwards, a great source for donations to Broadway Cares. I personally loved the two performances I mentioned before, and “Make Them Hear You” by Cynthia Erivo. I didn’t watch all of the ones in this article, but each of the ones I watched were uniquely moving and beautifully done. It made me look forward to this year’s performance, which is actually pretty soon! The 20th anniversary event is coming up on March 23, which I’m definitely marking my calendar for.
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