Musicals that will never be revived on Broadway — Page 3

Dreamboy3 said: "I didn’t see CZJ in ALNM but in her performance on the Tony Awards she seemed unhinged. Was it different in the show? (I finally saw that production with Bernadette who sings Sondheim like almost no one else and whose Send in the Clowns brought tears to my eyes in what was otherwise a dull and drab production.)"

Yes, that performance was not indicative at all of what she was doing in the show. Something or someone got into her head before the ceremony that night and she ended up having no idea how to translate her performance for a space that was multitudes bigger than what she was used to, but also having the close up cameras right in her face at the same time. 

I won’t go so far as to say it was a definitive performance that would never be matched, but it was in no way the disaster that people who only saw her Tony Awards performance would believe. 

tacotheatrelover said: "I kind of want a chance to see the cool stuff Iwasn't around to see. 

I'm quoting the sentence you wrote that distills the sentiment many people have no matter their age.

I wasn't around for the Jerry Herman shows I listed way back near the beginning of this thread.  Over the years I collected the cast albums.  Those shows were long before the time when people were filming from their seats so there are no YouTube bootlegs.  

People complain about the movie version of Mame (many also about the Hello Dolly movie) but if I hadn't turned on the TV 40 years ago & seen it as a child I probably wouldn't be as hooked on Herman.  So whatever its quality, at least it existed.

So enjoy the cast albums or whatever other recorded versions are available of the shows that pique your interest.  At least the shows you mention are.still recent enough that people might consider doing them.

I did see a production of American Idiot maybe 6 (?) years ago.  I thought it wasn't good.  But to each their own.

Much longer before that I saw Evil Dead with my little brother who is a fan of the movies.  It is dumb fun.

Maybe look up Bat Boy.  That's another odd show.

I think there's a lot of theatre fans who would like to see shows from before our theatergoing time, but a solid regional revival or concert version may have to suffice for many of them.

Broadway is not the only option!

It's also a matter of accepting that theater is ephemeral. I'll never see the original productions of Follies or Grand Hotel or The Glass Menagerie. Trying to recreate them nowadays would be foolish in any setting other than an academic one.

Updated On: 5/23/24 at 09:16 AM

It is easy to list a show that was considered a "flop" because why revive a show that was not successful the first time. I will list two Tony Award Winner for Best Musical that I doubt would be revived again. The two shows are "Titanic" and "Memphis".

Shogun: The Musical. #iykyk