Playbill: As crisp autumn air looks to settle over New York City in just a few, short, weeks, a thrilling new wave of musical theatre is taking over the stage! While Broadway brings its share of heavy-hitting stars, Off-Broadway is ready to burst at the seams with wildly original scores and bold stagings.
5 comments:
I found it interesting how so many up and coming musicals on and off broadway are biographies or retellings of historical events. I feel like so many musicals I’ve enjoyed have been inspired by books or films so it's a new angle to look so focused on the lives of real figures. The wide span of time frames is interesting as well from Galileo to Dolly Parton and I am interested in seeing how their historical placement affects the genre of the musical. On a separate note I’m very excited to learn more about The Heart. It seems like a very engaging and tense show where the stakes are extremely present and real in the medical field. It seems like a musical that will both explore the physical and emotional aspects of organ transplants in a way that isn’t as easily shown through film or television like many of the current medical dramas.
If this article says anything about the industry, it is that the only way to make a show that people will watch nowadays is to have an existing IP. People don't want to spend their money on things that might not be good; they would rather see something they know for sure they are going to enjoy. Additionally, it costs extra money to fund the creation of a new musical, so producing revivals is easier. Also, revivals are easier for investors to get behind because there is a history to that show, and they would already know if the script/music is good.
I am very excited to see what happens with the Dolly musical, as jukebox musicals often don't do well (even tho they find a fan base). However, with Dolly’s passing, it might get an initial boost in ticket sales that could fuel it for a couple years.
All in all, I think the broadway season is shaping up to be OK. Better than this current one, but probably not by much (this last season had a bunch of ok to terrible shows)
I find it interesting that many new musicals, on and off Broadway, are mostly biographical musicals depicting the life of a wide variety of individuals. From Galileo to Dolly Parton, this year’s new shows cover individuals from all points of history. I believe that biographical musicals are a great way to educate a variety of individuals on historical figures that they might not attempt to learn about otherwise. I had this experience when I saw Lempicka in previews on Broadway. Lempicka follows the obscure artist Tamara De Lempicka and the juxtaposition of the fame of her work. Without seeing this show, I would not have known about her work. Additionally, this phenomenon can be seen with Hamilton, as it covers the life of Alexander Hamilton, who was a founding father mostly forgotten by society. Overall, I think that this new trend of biographical musicals is a great way to educate the public on forgotten–yet still important–individuals in history.
As many of the other commenters have said, it's very noticeable how many of the shows are biographical, or based on an already popular book or movie. This is something we’ve been seeing for a while in theatre, with musicals like A Beautiful Noise, TINA, Beautiful, MJ the Musical, and probably most notably, Hamilton. This is a phenomenon we’re seeing in film as well, it feels like every other movie that comes out is a celebrity biopic, usually about a famous musician. (Elvis Presly, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, I’m looking at you.) It leads me to wonder why there’s such a big audience for shows like these. Are people just more comfortable with stories they already know and songs they’ve already heard? When everything is based on something else, it sometimes feels like the death of the original idea to me. Then I have to remember to look in places that aren’t just Broadway or the big blockbuster movies. There’s still plenty of originality out there if you know where to look for it. Then again, sometimes there’s nothing wrong with a little bit of familiarity in a very unpredictable world.
I was really excited for this article. Finally something that disney and film can’t seem to get right: we want original stories. Alas half the new musicals are adaptations or biopics. Sometimes I truly wonder if there are any “new” stories left to tell or if we’re always telling the same stories from thousands of years ago just in a different font… Wanted looks really exciting. My folks saw the heart at the La Jolla Playhouse this last year and my Dad really liked it. I’m mildly worried about the Anne Frank pop comedy… Midnight looks interesting, I’d be curious to see the full plot of that one. The poster feels very binary so I'd be curious to see how the show’s theme plays into that or contradicts that. Galileo is somewhat interesting BUT part of me is like why are we making another show about a white man fighting the government? Why not focus on other stories of resilience and rebellion? Big fan of Raul Esparaza tho. He’s my favorite Company Bobby.
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