Which comic hero would best translate to the musical stage?

Who are you referring to? Who could sue ALW for Phantom?
And it's ALW, Lloyd Webber, not Webber Lloyd.

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Updated On: 8/5/06 at 07:59 PM

There was a Superman musical (IT'S A BIRD! IT'S A PLANE! IT'S... SUPERMAN!) back in the '60s. Don't ask me how they pulled it off.

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Isn't there a BATMAN musical in the works?

There was, with a score by Jim Steinman, but Warner Bros. pulled the plug on it. A few samples of the score were posted here a couple of weeks ago, but they were pretty awful. Thank God it's not going anywhere.

That said, I still think a Batman musical could work if done by a creative team of great vision. I don't think it would work as a tradition proscenium stage Broadway musical, but if it were done as an environmental piece, with Batman swinging around the theater and stuff, it could be awesome. Maybe at Madison Square Garden?

Yeah, that's what I was thinking. Of course, half the reason I want this done is so I can play the Joker one day

Maybe The Sandman
the Crow or Punisher as a rock opera
Dick Tracy
Batman is trying

but really, these would all prolly suck

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"It's a Bird It's a Plane It's Superman" was supposedly a decent show, actually. It received mostly positive reviews, and I have the CD, which is pretty decent. However, it did have a pretty short run and is infrequently revived as it is VERY hokey, more in the George Reeves 1950's style than like the modern Superman we know. There was a pretty long thread on it a while ago.

P.S.: a "Spider-Man" musical was in the works, announced shortly after the first movie, but I haven't heard anything about it since (thank God).

It's a Bird...Superman is going to have a staged concert reading on Nov. 2oth at the Alex Theater in Pasadena. It's being put on by the Musical Theater Guild and I doubt there will be anybody famous in the show.

thank you for clearing that up.

i think they should make a Buffy stage musical.

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Well, they did have that BUFFY musical episode so it may work on stage.

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The Phantom has appeared in newspapers for decades. The basic story is that The Phantom is immortal. He wears a purple head to toe costume. He fights "pirates" - e.g. bad guys. In truth, The Phantom has been several people over the decades - the position being passed down from father to son to son to son. He lives in a cave in Africa. It's basic problem is the good white man protecting Africa. The Phantom has girlfriends - he would need one to have an heir to pass the title to. The Phantom has always been a male. Given the long history of the character, the story can start in the 1800s, swing to the 1900s or even to 2007. It would be pretty cool to start the show and at the end of the first scene have The Phantom die. Audiences would wonder what the heck was going on - especially if they weren't familiar with the character. Then there is a new Phantom a couple of scenes later, carrying on the legacy. Since he is not a "super" hero, and he doesn't have gadgets, it's just a story of one man against evil.