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re: Daily Beast: Is so full of errors-musicals from films

Posted by: NewtonUK 09:48 am EDT 03/18/14
In reply to: Daily Beast: Is Broadway Brain-Dead? - ryhog 08:16 pm EDT 03/17/14

Last season's Breakfast at Tiffanys was not a musical. Matilda is based on the book, not on a movie. Charlie and the Chocolate factory is based on the book, not the movie. The reason Woody Allen didnt write the lyrics to Bullets is that the show uses pre-existing period songs.

Hairspray started the trend of movie to musical in 2002? Hmmmm. (I include a couple of shows that say they were based on a book - cuz rights were cheaper than the film rights. But the film was on their minds IMHO)

42nd Street - 1980
A Little Night Music (Smiles of a Summer Night) 1975
Applause (All About Eve) - 1972
Big - 1996
Carrie - 1988
Georgy (Georgey Girl) 1970
Gigi - 1974
Grand Hotel - 1989
Henry Sweet Henry - The World of Hnery Orient - 1967
Heres Love (Miracle on 34th Street) 1964
Illya Darling (Never on Sunday) 1967
King of Hearts - 1978
La Cage Aux Folles - 1983
La Strada - 1969
Look to the Lilies (Lilies of the Field) 1970
Meet me in St Louis 1989
My Favorite Year 1992
Nick and Nora 1991
Passion - 1994
Promises Promises (The Apartment) 1968
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers - 1982
She Loves Me (Little Shop Around the Corner) 1964
Singin in the Rain - 1985
State Fair - 1996
Sugar (Some Like it Hot) 1972
Sunset Blvd - 1994
Sweet Charity (Nights of Cabiria) 1967
The Full Monty - 2000
The Lion King - 1997
The producers 2000
Victor/Victoria 1995
Woiman of the Year 1981
Zorba - 1968
Destry rides Again - 1959
Oh CAptain! - 1958
Silk Stockings (Ninotchka) 1955


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re: Daily Beast: Is so full of errors-musicals from films

Posted by: JayBee 12:55 pm EDT 03/18/14
In reply to: re: Daily Beast: Is so full of errors-musicals from films - NewtonUK 09:48 am EDT 03/18/14

The difference, as some else pointed out, was that those older musicals reinvented themselves; they used the plots for inspiration. In fact, they often tried to hide the fact that they were based on an old movie by retitling the show. They wanted to make it new and fresh. Today, it is all dumbed down - they practically slop their B-movie on the stage frame for frame with some songs thrown in but very little, or no, imagination.


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re: Daily Beast: Is so full of errors-musicals from films

Posted by: Jonesy 11:16 am EDT 03/18/14
In reply to: re: Daily Beast: Is so full of errors-musicals from films - NewtonUK 09:48 am EDT 03/18/14

Without getting into nitpicking, the big differences between the examples you've listed and the current trend is that those previous works' authors endeavored to create a new work out of the source material.

These days, producers are very clearly banking on the popularity of the source material and are merely putting up a mediocre stage version of the movie.

It's a cheap ploy, and while it makes money in the short run, it cheapens theatre as a whole and destroys the industry.


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Broadway's affair with Musicals based on films

Posted by: NewtonUK ( ) 10:11 am EDT 03/18/14
In reply to: re: Daily Beast: Is so full of errors-musicals from films - NewtonUK 09:48 am EDT 03/18/14

The numbers tell it all - the increasing lack of imagination on Broadway as musicals based on movies - any movie - take over the Great White Way.

In olden days, this only happened when there was (usually) a really good impulse: 81/2 became 9. Ninotchka became Silk Stockings. Smiles of a Summer Night became A Little Night Music; Nights of Cabiria became Sweet Charity.

Here are the original musicals based on films by the numbers.

1970-1980 7 of 139 new musicals 5%
1980-1990 9 of 105 new musicals 8.5%
1990-2000 12 of 72 new musicals 16%
2000-2014 38 of 138 mew musicals 26%

15 of the 38 musicals in 2000-2014 were hits. That's 39%. About one third better odds than musicals success overall. This will not staunch the trend.


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re: Daily Beast: Is so full of errors-musicals from films

Posted by: ryhog 10:06 am EDT 03/18/14
In reply to: re: Daily Beast: Is so full of errors-musicals from films - NewtonUK 09:48 am EDT 03/18/14

this is a quintessential example of missing the forest for the trees.


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re: Oh pleaaaaaase.

Posted by: NewtonUK 11:08 am EDT 03/18/14
In reply to: re: Daily Beast: Is so full of errors-musicals from films - ryhog 10:06 am EDT 03/18/14

Mr or Ms Ryhog, do you ever have a happy day? Ever?

I was merely pointing out, thesis aside, that the Daily Beast article is full of factual errors. And as I later post, there have been many movie to musicals - successful ones, before Hairspray.

Although it is a trend.

Its hard to take from my post that the errors were mt ONLY problem with the Daily Beast piece.

I'm sorry that, yet again, I don't live up to your inexplicable expectations.

My life is shattered now and forever


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re: Oh pleaaaaaase.

Posted by: ryhog 11:20 am EDT 03/18/14
In reply to: re: Oh pleaaaaaase. - NewtonUK 11:08 am EDT 03/18/14

I am having a happy day, thank you. Only warmer weather would make me happier. And I don't think there is anything life shattering in anything we discuss in this or most other threads. But I do think there are times that we learn something by standing back from the minutiae and assessing the state of an art form that we all obvious care about in broad terms. For someone (like the author of the article) who obviously is not inclined to bore down into the details, there is a notion-and not one that's especially pleasant-that musical theatre writing has become stupid. That ought to give you more pause than the miscellaneous errors you catalog, IMO. But I understand there were also folks rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.


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