I agree with you. pardon me for any generalizations here - I think any discussion about this subject is going to invite that - but it does seem to me that "in olden days" the focus was on the writers, and their desire to adapt a certain property for the stage, and nowadays projects are more title-driven - it's a bit less important who writes it than that it gets written.
Since Sunday In The Park was mentioned in this thread already, that was certainly a project initiated by Sondheim and Lapine after looking at the painting. THEY had the vision to do it, and getting backing from producers was a later step. But did Ahrens and Flaherty come up with the idea that Rocky would make great musical theatre, or were they approached by a producer who thought musicalizing the legendary movie would spell a sure-fire hit? (or, even if A&F did come up with the idea first, the general mentality today does seem to be "what will be an obvious sell" rather than "what would make a complelling musical on its own terms?").
Another change I feel, which may go hand-in-hand with the fact that Broadway musicals/composers are no longer a vital part of the pop music world the way they were before the advent of rock - musicals now seem to be marketed by genre rather than by composer or star. It used to be "what will Rodgers and Hammerstein come up with next?" or "What show is Porter working on now," or "what will Merman's next vehicle be?" - but now the questions tend to be more like "what will be the next rock group to be put into a jukebox show" or "what movie titles will we see on Broadway next season" etc. I tend to think the interest (at least in the way shows are marketed and produced) has gone from "who" to "what."
So, in a way, no wonder Rocky might not have spoken to A&F the way their earlier shows did (many of which, to me, seem like they did have a vested interest in the subject on its own terms, familiar to the general public or not) - I tend to think that's not as expected of writers as much anymore. The brand name has become the goal, not the craft of the writers. (Or, the craft is taken for granted, but that "spark of creation" that comes from a true connection to the material is not considered as important.)
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