Junkbox Musical?

[puppetmaker]

I can remember when "Phantom of the Opera" opened on Broadway and there was much discussion about the Death of the American Musical because we had all these British imports that were cluttering up our Broadway houses. Now we have what are called "Jukebox Musicals" which started with "Mama Mia" with the songs of ABBA and had continued success with "Moving Out" with the songs of Bill Joel. Now we have a number of musicals that are song catalogues with a loose story line to move us from song to song. It is not that there are no more new musicals. Elton John who had success with Aida is back at it with "Vampire Lestate" based on the Anne Rice novel. Anne Rice found religion and says her next three books are a narrative of Jesus' life told from Jesus POV (But I Digress). I don't think that these musicals are going to kill American Theater nor are the next couple of Disney projects. Theater has to adapt to its audience especially the commercial ventures. If it makes money then it will be copied. And if we get the young into the seats and use to seeing theater on a regular basis, I think theater will be much better in the long run.

Caroline since seeing Beauty and the Beast has shown a marked interest in seeing Disney Princess Movies. Yesterday she brought to me on her own our copy of Cinderella and told me that she wanted to see it. We sat down and watched it together. She liked the mice and the Fairy Godmother the best I think. She did watch the whole thing. I had forgotten how much of that film has very little dialogue and it had more songs than I remember. I think Sleeping Beauty is next on the list. Snow White might have to wait a while. I know we have some newer ones like "Aladdin" and "Mulan" but she seems to be enjoying the classics so that is where I am starting. She still loves all the Pixar films and most of the Dreamworks animation films. She has just added cell animation to her list of things she likes.

I am still working on the living room and feel that I will be for the rest of my life. I am hoping that this is an illusion and as I tackle it the room will re-emerge but right now I am not holding my breath. Caroline is learning that she can take 1 or 2 books off the shelf and then she should put them back before getting the next book. Now if I can get her to keep the bear population down on the couch. She is up to 7 bears, 1 puppy dog, and little Mikey along with most of her alphabet blocks and the ever present magna doodle.

Someday I will get back to writing and art. I am a little behind on both this month.

I am grateful for Walt Disney and his body of animated work.

Comments

[scarlettina.livejournal.com]

I think that when people talk about the death of the American musical, they're talking about the death of the musical in the classic form. I'm not a big fan of the Jukebox Musical concept myself; it leaves so much to chance and feels like a quick and easy way to open a theater with relatively little creative justification to me. It feels like it puts the cart before the horse, the music before the storytelling. But in the classic musical form, the music is there to enhance and broaden the storytelling; every song should move the story forward. I don't think American theater has died, far from it. But I do think it's evolving. I'm just not sure I like the direction it's going.