Musicals that have aged poorly with time?

I just want to know everyone's opinions on musicals that, while groundbreaking when they first premiered, are now kind of bland due to the changing times.

My vote is for Oklahoma. While the show was originally groundbreaking in its connection of the story and songs, and the plot points were somewhat refreshing at their time, its kind of dull now. It's hard to explain why it does, maybe because now so many musicals have their music integrated well into the story and have a much stronger story than Oklahoma, maybe it's because the plot has become somewhat cliched over time, but it hasn't aged well with time. The best description I've had of Oklahoma in today's age is that it is the personification of a tumbleweed. And yet it was so groundbreaking in its time.

Agree re: certain aspects of RENT (the lines with "illin' " are indeed painful).

Give it two or 20 years and the hip modern language of HAMILTON will be painful as well.

I cannot hear "I'll call. I hate the fall" without wincing. All of Act 2 is horrendous "it's a holiday so we'll sing a song based on what's going on in a character's life on that holiday" narration. I think it has some great music and even some great lyrics, but Larson needed a book writer. Add the overly stylistic direction from Michael Grief that's at odds with the supposedly gritty libretto and the whole show just comes across as a pretentious mess.



Again, I think there's a lot of good in there. And had Larson not died and had a strong collaborator it could have been worthy of its acclaim. But he didn't, and it isn't.

Rent, Avenue Q

Am I the only one who still loves Rent? It's one of my favorite cast albums ever. Shame about the movie, though.

I also adore A Chorus Line, but it feels very much like a period piece.

I still love RENT, but to deny its flaws is foolish.

A CHORUS LINE on stage is endearingly of its time, on film it is garishly so.

imeldasturn said: "Rent, Avenue Q



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Actually, Avenue Q has some weird moments, but other than it's fine. I think in the future it's in danger of becoming very dated, but right now it's fine. Mixtape is kind of dated, and the "George Bush" line is somewhat dated (though I must point out that most productions update the lines to modern time. For instance, when I saw the Off-Broadway production recently, they changed it to "Donald Trump", but other than that the show's tales of struggles with sexuality and struggling to find some meaning in life will always be relevant. And yes, The Internet is for Porn seems that it will become dated soon, but keep in mind that pornography has been used in a variety in mediums, dating back to the original printing press in the renaissance. But I can see how some things in it can become somewhat dated, or at least it's not as shocking as it was originally(that being said it still is a very poignant comedy).

why do threads like this that could actually contain an interesting conversation immediately devolve into a listing of shows that people didn't like the first time around? That renders the question meaningless.

I actually disagree with RENT aging poorly, A lot of the situations and stereotypes in the plot still relevant in this day in age...It's defiently one of the most grand breaking musicals of the past 20 years.



One musical that I think could be aging poorly is Chess from the complex Cold War plot.I would love to see it revived but thd book/plot might be too outdated .I know one of the reasons why the original Broadway production closed prematurely was because of poor reviews of the rewritten book......It's a shame because I think it has one of the best scores in musical theater history....

Updated On: 3/27/16 at 06:44 PM

I think some people need to understand the difference between a show aging poorly and a show being a period piece.

Company is a period piece and I would hardly say that it has "aged poorly."

The original production of Les Miserables, on the other hand, is horribly dated and borderline campy.

Rent hasn't aged poorly, but is heavily flawed. Had Larson not tragically passed away so early in the shows life, it would probably be tighter and possibly not have that bizarre false death ending.

Chess is a musical that we may not see on broadway ever again. It's a nice score, but it's very much so a product of the 80's and I don't think it would hold up very well now.

Jarethan said: "I saw a production of Chess at the Signature Theatre in Virginia 4 or 5 years ago...it was the best version I have seen, and did not seem dated at all. Just because it was about something that no longer exists does not make it dated.



You made a good point.I heard great things about the Signature Theatre production. I know that Michael Bennett who was originally supposed to direct the original Londoj production imagined it to have technological aspects including monitors and a titling floor but plans fell through when he passed away then Trevor Nunn took over. I would love to see a new Broadway/West End production with similar aspects with some of the advancements the RAH concert had but I'm not sure if that will ever happen.I know there was a rumored Broadway revival starring Josh Groban at one time...

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I would add Carousel to this list. I think its views on and treatment of women- especially with regards to Billy being "forgiven" for hitting Julie and Louise- really won't sit well with a modern audience.

You can say all the classics have not aged well since we now live in the age of every one getting their nose out of joint for the slightest perceived slight.