Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING? — Page 2

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#26

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 12:05pm

MOVIN' OUT - "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me"
That was my favorite part of the show!!!

#27

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 12:05pm

Mary_Ethel - along those same overture lines, the one for My Fair Lady covers a lot of ground.

#28

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 12:07pm

Another vote with Margo.. A Chorus Line
But I am a sucker for the overture to Camelot

"All I ask of you is one thing: please don't be cynical. I hate cynicism -- it's my least favorite quality and it doesn't lead anywhere. Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get. But if you work really hard and you're kind, amazing things will happen." Conan O'Brien

Updated On: 10/9/04 at 12:07 PM

#29

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 12:10pm

I'd forgotten about the Camelot overture...truly majestic.

"Y'all have a GRAND day now"

#30

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 12:15pm

Doesn't On the Twentieth Century open with something from Oscar's latest failed production? I have the script somewhere, and it's been a while since I've seen it, but I vaguely recall some brief scene, which leads to the actors singing "Stranded Again".

Even though what follows is not so great, "Little Old New York" in Tenderloin is a helluva number.

The Jerome Robbins staging of "Comedy Tonight" as evidenced in "Jerome Robbins Broadway" is some of the funniest musical comedy staging I've ever seen.

"Gif me the cobra jool!"

#31

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 12:43pm

Phantom of course when that music began the hair on my arms stood up and the chandlier rising. I will never forget that evening.

MAKE SOMEONE LAUGH!!!!!*******************

#32

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 1:17pm

D-Grant,

That's true! Musical "theme" of show--"I Could Have Danced All Night" is used THROUGHOUT Overture. Good Thought!

"I say YOU'RE the CUTEST one. No, I say YOU'RE the CUTEST One. And we go on like that from dawn to three."

#33

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 1:21pm

Hi Magruder,

Yes, ON THE TWENTIETH CENTURY opens with Oscar Jaffee's latest production--a "modernized" version of the Joan of Arc story.

Performace is stopped when Jaffee's creditors come onstage and forcibly remove sets, costumes, etc. from performers.

"I say YOU'RE the CUTEST one. No, I say YOU'RE the CUTEST One. And we go on like that from dawn to three."

#34

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 1:26pm

42nd Street, hands down.

#35

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 5:25pm

Phantom of the Opera
Rent
Chicago
Wicked
Sweeney Todd
Les Miz
Gypsy

We can't all come and go by bubble...

#36

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 5:30pm

Jwei12,

That is a PHENOMAL dance number.

"I say YOU'RE the CUTEST one. No, I say YOU'RE the CUTEST One. And we go on like that from dawn to three."

#37

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 5:39pm

Golden Rainbow - 24 Hours a Day

Poster Emeritus

#38

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 5:46pm

Mr. Roxy,

You know GOLDEN RAINBOW ???

I NEVER thought anyone else... :)

Do you know that Gorme's acting talents were so LIMITED (to put it mildly) they let her play the climatic scene DRUNK because it was easier for her to get through it that way?

"I say YOU'RE the CUTEST one. No, I say YOU'RE the CUTEST One. And we go on like that from dawn to three."

#39

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 6:29pm

42nd Street - no contest.

Faced with these Loreleis, what man can moralize!

#40

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 6:33pm

To Mary Ethel

I took a " big " date to Golden Rainbow. The scene in the desert where they "cracked up " was scripted & not spontaneous. Gorme got tired of 8 a week so she had the number " I Love Taking Care of You " dropped

Rainbow was a vanity production for both . Entertaining but not great . The movie on which it was based " A Hole In The Head" was superior in every way

Poster Emeritus

#41

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 7:07pm

Mr. Roxy,

That's because A HOLE IN THE HEAD was about a 'player' who was about to lose custody of his eight-year old son to his more stable brother and sister-in-law.

GOLDEN RAINBOW was about a 'player' who was about to lose custody of his eight-year old son to his deceased wife's sister--a workaholic pain in the butt who needed therapy and knew as much about child raising as Cinderella's Stepmother.

The musical's authors didn't modify the source material, they twisted it into a pretzel. Arthur Schulman, who wrote original play the film was based on and whose idea it was to musicalize it, walked off his own production.

Steve Lawrence hated backstage politics on show so much (particularly how his wife Gorme was treated) that he vowed he would never do another Broadway show again. And he hasn't.

"I say YOU'RE the CUTEST one. No, I say YOU'RE the CUTEST One. And we go on like that from dawn to three."

#42

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 7:10pm

Pippin or JCS.

I have my books and my poetry to protect me...

#43

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 7:13pm

Maybe not the BEST but I think the Producers opening is pretty clever. The ones from 42nd Street, Pippin, Fiddler and Gypsy are also fabulous. I've never seen Chorus Line but the openingsounds great, as does the entire show itself.

Rosencrantz: "Be happy - if you're not even HAPPY what's so good about surviving? We'll be all right. I suppose we just go on." - from Tom Stoppard's Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead

Updated On: 10/9/04 at 07:13 PM

#44

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 7:14pm

A few more with great "Opening Numbers "

1. Mack & Mabel - Movies Were Movies
2. It's A Bird, Its A Plane, It's Supermen - Doing Good
3. Baker Street - It's So Simple

Poster Emeritus

#45

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 7:38pm

Little Shop (Okay so it's not the BEST but I like(d) it)
Rent (counting 'Rent' as the opening song)
Chicago (for reasons that have already been stated)
Into the Woods (Haven't seen the show, but it's awesome on the CD)

#46

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 7:39pm

The URINETOWN opening is REALLY clever when the pianist is getting chased then starts playing the music.

I have my books and my poetry to protect me...

#47

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 7:40pm

i really like the auction in poto.

#48

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 7:44pm

I forgot about Urinetown. That was very cleaver.

#49

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 8:04pm

BroadwayDiva,

PIPPIN! Yes!

Even though it's been thirty years, I still recall those eerie opening chords and the "magically" moving hands.

And the interaction w/audience was quite clever as well.

"I say YOU'RE the CUTEST one. No, I say YOU'RE the CUTEST One. And we go on like that from dawn to three."

#50

re: Which Musical Had The BEST OPENING?

Posted: 10/9/04 at 8:06pm

Magruder,

The slapstick "Comedy Tonight" number replaced the much more gentle "Love Is In The Air".

Both can be heard on SIDE BY SIDE BY SONDHEIM album.

"I say YOU'RE the CUTEST one. No, I say YOU'RE the CUTEST One. And we go on like that from dawn to three."

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