Jukebox Musicals

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Jukebox Musicals

Posted: 11/9/04 at 2:19pm

Okay, I know we've been talking about All Shook Up and Good Vibrations, and I'm sure this has been discussed at some point, but, combing through an old Rolling Stone, I found this piece on rock musicals, a la Mamma Mia! The ones discussed were Lennon, We Will Rock You, and The Wall. Not to mention, I heard something about a Ramones musical called Gabba Gabba Hey! and I asked for information on a workshop for a Springsteen musical.

Okay. Ramones/Springsteen (ESPECIALLY Springsteen) + musical =...what is going on? I can see how The Wall could work (hell, look at The Who's Tommy), I can see Lennon, Good Vibrations, and All Shook Up working, but this is getting ridculous (sp). A Queen musical? *shakes head* Not to mention, basically half of the Springsteen songbook could never work as a full musical. The Ramones, I'm not even going into.

What's next? "My Heart Will Go On?" "Baby One More Time?"

*shudders*

Sorry. Random bitching. Dicuss. Bitch along. Do whatever. (And I know the first argument is going to be "They bring in broader audiences," so can we just skip over that?)

"During this performance, please feel free to let your cell phones and pagers ring willy-nilly. However, do remember that there are heavily-armed knights on stage and you might well be dragged up and impaled." (Pre-curtain announcement at the new Broadway musical Monty Python's Spamalot)

Updated On: 11/9/04 at 02:19 PM

re: Jukebox Musicals

Posted: 11/9/04 at 2:33pm

Rock musicals aren't the same as jukebox musicals- you might want to change the subject line.

Updated On: 11/9/04 at 02:33 PM

re: Rock/Jukebox Musicals

Posted: 11/9/04 at 2:35pm

A splashy musical--or even a small low-budget one--is the antithesis of everything the Ramones stood for. STOP THIS SHOW FROM HAPPENING!!!!!!!!

"Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they've been given than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is not a fact. It's an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It's a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing.” ~ Muhammad Ali

re: Rock/Jukebox Musicals

Posted: 11/9/04 at 2:35pm

This trend is very disheartening. I do think there's room for all kinds of musicals on Broadway, but I prefer musicals that are actually written for the stage, as opposed to globbed together from pop tunes that have nothing to do with the characters singing them.

There is a distinction between so-called "rock" musicals and "Jukebox Musicals." "Tommy" was actually written for the theatre, even though it wasn't performed in that medium until two decades after the fact.

Unfortunately, the huge success of "Mamma Mia" and "Movin' On" has ensured that we'll see variations on the jukebox musical for a long time to come. (Although to be fair, "Movin' On" isn't really a jukebox musical. In fact, it isn't a musical at all. It's a dance concert. A very good dance concert, yes. But not a musical.)

Updated On: 11/9/04 at 02:35 PM

re: Rock/Jukebox Musicals

Posted: 11/9/04 at 2:45pm

Fixed the topic line...

My feeling is that now they're going to find ways to work in songs that really just don't fit into the storyline. I mean, if the Springsteen musical had taken off, I don't want to even think about how bad a song like "Born To Run" or "Jungleland" would be in context with the storyline. And the only reason it would be in there is because the fans are expecting it. (And speaking of Springsteen, the only good stage production I've seen using his music was the Pittsburgh Ballet Theater's production of "Springsteen and Seegar" last April. The first ballet, "Straight Line" was mind-blowing.)

and Borstalboy- Don't remind me. *shudders* Can we go kill the person who suggested that the Ramones musical was a good idea?

And I know that they rewrote Tommy for the stage. It's one of the ones I have to go listen to, yet never had the chance to. Sadly, I have to live with the original album for now.

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