What makes a successful Musical?
What makes a successful Musical?
Braniff Forever
Featured Actor Joined: 6/27/15
#1What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/11/15 at 11:49am
Why does HAMILTON, FUN HOME, AMERICAN IN PARIS, WICKED, KINKY BOOTS, etc., succeed when shows like THE VISIT, DR ZHIVAGO, AIRLINE HIGHWAY, fail? (And some shows seem to have moderate success IT SHOULDA BEEN YOU).... What separates the winners from the middle and the bottom?
Spotlight61
Broadway Star Joined: 8/28/06
#4What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/11/15 at 11:52am
"Engagement and entertainment."
Lots of unsuccessful shows have that, though. The Visit certainly did.
Braniff Forever
Featured Actor Joined: 6/27/15
#5What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/11/15 at 11:52am
Yes, ultimately, if nobody is buying tickets, then of course a show will fail. But what are the defining characteristics of musicals that succeed versus those that fail or sort of limp along?
Braniff Forever
Featured Actor Joined: 6/27/15
#6What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/11/15 at 11:56am
I just started reading a biography of Richard Rogers and am learning that most of his shows before and after Hammerstein are rarely revived or remembered. So is it because of Hammerstein that we even remember Richard Rogers today? Ironically, Rodgers has a theater on Broadway named after him and Hammerstein does not. Wonder why?
dramamama611
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
#7What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/11/15 at 11:58am
This comes up constantly https://forum.broadwayworld.com/readmessage.php?thread=1085800&dt=20.
But it comes to this: THERE IS NO ANSWER. If there was, every show would be a hit....because every producer would know which shows to cast.
Some shows with a serious message succeed, some don't. Some shows with big names succeed, some don't. Some revivals succeed, some don't.
#8What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/11/15 at 11:59am
It isn't something you can answer. If there was a formula, everyone would do it, and they aren't and can't.
Braniff Forever
Featured Actor Joined: 6/27/15
#9What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/11/15 at 12:01pm
The same question could be asked about films or books
dramamama611
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
#10What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/11/15 at 12:04pm
"The same question could be asked about films or books
"
And the answer would be the same. Success is a mystery.
Braniff Forever
Featured Actor Joined: 6/27/15
#11What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/11/15 at 12:11pm
To answer my own question (lol) it is all about emotional engagement. The audience has to feel emotionally moved or connected somehow to the characters and show.
#12What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/11/15 at 12:12pm
"To answer my own question (lol) it is all about emotional engagement. The audience has to feel emotionally moved or connected somehow to the characters and show."
Can't be that. Wicked is successful. 
#13What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/11/15 at 12:17pm
An undefined mix of: good writing, score, direction, performance, timing, and luck.
#14What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/11/15 at 12:19pm
To answer my own question (lol) it is all about emotional engagement. The audience has to feel emotionally moved or connected somehow to the characters and show.
Can't be that. Wicked is successful.
But Wicked does move an audience (even though there are some people on these boards who don't like Wicked).
Updated On: 8/11/15 at 12:19 PM
#15What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/11/15 at 12:19pm
It's all alchemy.
Btw, Jeffrey did you notice that playbill.com used one your tweets for their "best cast album of last season" piece?
#16What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/11/15 at 12:21pm
"But Wicked does move an audience (even though there are some people on these boards who don't like Wicked)."
Yes, I am one of "some people."
#17What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/11/15 at 12:25pm
Btw, Jeffrey did you notice that playbill.com used one your tweets for their "best cast album of last season" piece?
First of all, yes. Second of all, what does that have to do with the subject here?
Updated On: 8/11/15 at 12:25 PM#18What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/11/15 at 1:07pm
Nothing.
I just thought it was pretty cool that your opinion was selected for their article.
dramamama611
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
#19What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/11/15 at 1:39pm
Which is why taz wrote: BTW.
#20What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/11/15 at 1:52pm
The only possible correct answer is that there is no answer, but we can dig a bit deeper to get a sense of why there is no answer.
For the most part, the key is confluence and that can take on many variations-a show that arrives at a uniquely good time (either in the cosmos or just on Broadway), a show that brings together multiple talents at the top of their game or just a show with producers that are tapped into audience zeitgeist and adroit marketing, etc etc. (All of these can of course work in the reverse.)
It is always a roll of the dice, and statistically the results are consistent with the odds of winning at craps.
#21What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/12/15 at 8:03am
Thanks for pointing that out dramamama, but what does it have to do with the subject here?
#22What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/12/15 at 9:39am
"I just started reading a biography of Richard Rogers and am learning that most of his shows before and after Hammerstein are rarely revived or remembered. So is it because of Hammerstein that we even remember Richard Rogers today? Ironically, Rodgers has a theater on Broadway named after him and Hammerstein does not. Wonder why?"
With his earlier partner Lorenz Hart, Rogers and Hart composed some of the most memorable songs of the Great American Song Book.
Eurotrash
Featured Actor Joined: 8/28/13
#23What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/12/15 at 9:51am
Baffled there's anyone who can't fathom why Wicked is such a mega-hit.
Braniff Forever
Featured Actor Joined: 6/27/15
#24What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/12/15 at 10:22am
So Hogan...what makes a musical like Hamilton successful versus say IT SHOULDA BEEN YOU?
Updated On: 8/12/15 at 10:22 AM
#25What makes a successful Musical?
Posted: 8/12/15 at 10:41am
Greens greens nothing but greens(money)
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