"They think making a musical unattractive somehow makes it more important."
I'd rephrase that as:
"They think making a musical realistic makes it more accessible."
We need to remember here that Broadway musicals (rightly or wrongly) were considered naff in the UK throughout the 1980s (and the long list of failed transfers testifies to this perception). When I was in my teenage years in the 1980s I was considered "old before your time" because I was more interested in Broadway musicals than Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet, Wham, etc.
It wasn't until I was at a houseparty in Amsterdam in the late 1990s where I met a lawyer from NY and mentioned in a rather apologetic tone that I liked Broadway musicals, and he responded "Hey, you're a gay guy, that's allowed", that I actually had a positive response to telling someone I liked musicals. If I hadn't been with someone and he hadn't been with someone I might have fallen in love.
So what has gone on since then is re-directing these brilliantly written and brilliantly scored works in a way that makes them accessible to British audiences. And this production of La Cage is a perfect testimony to that because my schoolfriend, who was very much into 80s chart music and thought musicals were silly, loved it.
Or maybe he's just got old and naff.
Or maybe he's finally caught up with me.
Updated On: 4/3/10 at 04:29 AM
