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by - September 28, 2009 - 2:15 PM
A few nights ago, I went to see Insane in the Brain, a stage production that bills itself as a “street dance” interpretation of Ken Kesey’s One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. No, really, I did.
At first blush, the premise sounds absolutely bizarre and not just because it takes its title from a Cypress Hill song. But the show itself was certainly fascinating: When it was good, it was very good—one patient’s OCD tics become a choreography of their own, the scenes of electro-shock therapy were an electric midair acrobatic dance. When it wasn’t good, it was simply a bit disappointing—most dancers are not actors and some of the choices they made were a bit odd.
In any case, it got me thinking—in this era of mash-ups, what are some of the most interesting, most bizarre, most fascinating adaptations that have graced the stage? Here are ten more examples.
1. Carrie: The Musical
If you’ve ever read Stephen King’s novel about a sheltered girl with astounding telekinetic powers and a religious nut for a mother who ends up doused in pig’s blood and slaughtering her classmates, and thought, “You know, there’s a musical in there”—well, you aren’t alone.
In the mid-1980s, after the book had been made into a very successful movie starring Sissy Spacek as the titular Carrie, some major Broadway talent came together to adapt the novel into a musical. In 1988, the show made it to Broadway, at a cost of $8 million and with veteran stage actress Betty Buckley.
But despite all that seemed to be going for it—a good cast, choreography by Debbie Allen, lyrics by an award-winning songwriter—the musical has become the granddaddy of all Broadway flops. While audience reaction to the show was mixed, the reviews were not. Overwhelmingly negative, they scared off the show’s investors, who pulled the plug after only five performances.
If you visit carriethemusical.com, you can even watch the performance, although the video quality is rather poor. The opening number includes a kick-line and it all goes downhill from there. Carrie even does a dance number with her telekinetically animated prom dress.
2. Jane Eyre: The Musical
Again, if you’ve ever read Jane Eyre and thought Charlotte Bronte’s gothic romance featuring scenes of draconian punishment, a madwoman in the attic, and a mysterious, sometimes cruel and yet somehow still lovable employer, and thought, “Musical!”—you’ve been beaten to the punch. In 1995, a musical drama version of the book premiered in Wichita, Kansas, received good reviews, and ultimately made its way to Broadway in 2000. There, it did pretty well—the show received a Tony nomination for Best Musical and Best Actress in a Musical, among several other nominations.
3. High Fidelity: The Musical
Even though the 1995 Nick Hornby book and the 2000 film starring John Cusack and Jack Black were ostensibly about music, this does not necessarily mean the story should be set to music. While it was probably damned from the start, the 2006 musical version of High Fidelity suffered from a bland script featuring indistinct shaggy hipster-type characters, incidental dancing, and the difficult task of writing songs that would fit a cult hit about being snobbish about music. The Broadway show opened to largely negative reviews and closed after 14 performances.
4. Debbie Does Dallas: The Musical
In 2001, Debbie did something that she certainly hadn’t done in the seminal (sorry) 1978 porno movie about a small-town cheerleader trying to earn enough money to get to Dallas in order to try out for the fictional “Texas Cowgirls” cheerleading team—she sang. The show, created for the New York International Fringe Festival, doesn’t actually contain a ton of nudity or sexual acts (prompting some audiences to decry it as a tease), but it does follow the essential plot of the original film, with songs, dances, and a lot of innuendo filling in the sexy bits.
5. Lizzie Borden: The Rock Musical
Musicals have been made from stranger stuff—think on the premise of Cats—in the past, but murder isn’t usually a place they go (well, except Carrie). But for roughly 20 years, a show has been floating around that does just that—Lizzie Borden, the rock musical.
Opening to good reviews in New York this week, Lizzie Borden assumes that Borden, who was acquitted of murdering her father and stepmother with an axe in 1892, was actually guilty and, armed with that, goes on to develop other, possibly more apocryphal plotlines: Lesbianism, incest, and decapitated pigeons all make an appearance.
6. Lord of the Rings: The Musical
Despite the magnificent treatment given to the trilogy by Peter Jackson, someone still thought more could be done to mine this particular treasure trove, and decided a musical was clearly in order. In 2006, an incredibly long musical version of the beloved story was produced at immense cost at Toronto’s Princess of Wales Theatre, before going on to open in 2007 on the London stage. Reviews were mixed—some found the epic production enchanting, its stage direction enlightened, and others, like the reviewer from The New York Times, found it a muddled mess of twee hobbits, amateur acting, and affected D&D dialogue. The show closed in July 2008.
But fear not for the denizens of Middle Earth: The show is now going on the road and could soon be rolling into a civic center near you, Ents, Elves, and elevenses and all, if you live in Europe or Australia.
7. Ben Hur Live
For months, I’ve been seeing ads for a live production of Ben Hur, the story of a first century Jewish slave who becomes king of the Roman chariot races, and I have to admit, it looks kind of awesome. Not because I’m an especial fan of the story, which was first penned in 1880 by Lew Wallace and later made into a blockbuster film starring Charlton Heston in 1959, but because the show stars 46 horses, 120 doves and two eagles, features a sea battle and a gladiator fight, in addition to the famous chariot race, and it’s all done in Latin and Aramic. It’s like a monster truck rally, only way, way, way more epic. And way, way, way more expensive: It’s going to cost £19 million to keep the show running through Christmas.
The show premiered in London’s O2 Arena on September 17 and unfortunately, I don’t have tickets as yet. Equally as unfortunate, reviews haven’t been good so far, so maybe I’ll pass.
However, what is also interesting to note is that this isn’t the only stage adaptation of the multi-part biblical-historical fiction novel: When Ben Hur premiered on a West End stage in 1902, the climactic chariot scene involved four teams of horses galloping full-tilt on a giant treadmill, which in turn powered the revolving scenery panel behind them, and dragging the chariots on railroad tracks behind them.
8. Dance of the Vampire (it’s huge in Germany)
Dance of the Vampire is a 1997 German-language remake of a Roman Polanski film The Fearless Vampire Killers, set to music. Tanz Der Vampire, as it’s called in its native Germany, has been pretty successful there and throughout Eastern Europe, although the Broadway version, which suffered from substantial rewrites, was not well received, closing after only 56 performances and losing around $12 million.
But aside from being one of Broadway’s biggest flops, Tans Der Vampire is significant for its soundtrack, which broadly recycled ’80s hits and tunes from the composer’s lesser known projects. For example, Bonnie Tyler’s classic torch-song “Total Eclipse of the Heart” is refashioned here into “Totale Finsternis,” and that unforgettable track from Meatloaf’s Bat Out of Hell II, “Objects in the Rear View Mirror May Appear Closer Than They Are,” becomes the melody for “Die Unstillbare Gier”.
Notably, the original Polanski film starred the ill-fated Sharon Tate, who would later be murdered by the deranged Manson clan.
9. Anna Karenina, The Musical
Tales of thwarted love, all fraught with high emotion, tinged with melodrama, and rife with songs just about to be sung are excellent vehicles for musicals—just not all tales of thwarted love. In 1992, the producers of Anna Karenina, The Musical learned that the hard way. The reinvention of the tragic story of the married Anna, her affair with the charming Count Vronsky, and her ultimate suicide was a resounding flop.
The New York Times, reviewing it after opening night, said, “Every unhappy musical is unhappy in its own way, but no musical is more unfortunate than Anna Karenina, the travesty of Tolstoy’s novel that opened last night at Circle in the Square Theater.” Ouch. The show ran for 46 performances and, despite the poor reviews, was actually nominated for several Tony Awards.
10. Edward Scissorhands
And why not, really? The movie that solidified director Tim Burton’s reputation for dark, fairytale worlds of saturated color, wonderfully kitschy 1950s aesthetics, and deliciously twisted fantasy has been lovingly and successfully recreated for the stage. But not just any kind of stage. Directed by Matthew Bourne, whose other works include a dance version of Dorian Gray set in the modern world of fashion, Edward Scissorhands is a dance-heavy, dialogue-free musical that recreates the splendor and the subtle horror of the original film through movement and set design. As one commentator wrote, “the musical features everything you want in a show: Leather costumes, fake snow, and a man who has scissors for hands.”
(Image credit: Bill Cooper/Golden Gate [X]Press)
* * * * *
By now you may have noticed a pattern: Tack “the musical” onto any classic original or weird story and you’ve got (generally unintended) comedy gold. Are there are any musicals or stage adaptations that strike you as silly? Any musicals you’d like to see? Thundercats: The Musical, perhaps?
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Comments (52)
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You missed one of my favorites. Evil Dead The Musical.
http://www.evildeadthemusical.com/
posted by Rogue on 9-28-2009 at 2:27 pm
How about The Shining: The Musical? It could put the line “Heeere’s Johnny!” into an entire song!
posted by Kelly on 9-28-2009 at 2:36 pm
My wife and I actually saw the Edward Scissorhands production. It was…incredible! We were amazed and I thought for sure it was going to be a vapid adaption of the movie (which I love). It captured the essence of the film wonderfully and was remarkably entertaining, esp. for someone who isn’t a big ballet/dance fan.
posted by Ramone on 9-28-2009 at 2:43 pm
Harold and the Purple Crayon and Strega Nona are two other weird ones
posted by Kathe on 9-28-2009 at 2:50 pm
Like Rogue said, Evil Dead The Musical was one of the best stage performances I’ve ever seen. I saw it in Montreal a few years ago and I was unaware that I was supposed to wear a poncho. I left the theater covered in fake blood.
posted by Shnax on 9-28-2009 at 2:56 pm
Kelly–there was a song in the 80s that Weird Al parodied into a song “Here’s Johnny”
War of the Worlds–The Musical?
posted by Wayne on 9-28-2009 at 3:01 pm
I’m surprised that \Little Shop of Horrors\ and \Sweeney Todd\ aren’t on your list, but I guess they’re disqualified by having been successful.
posted by Daniel on 9-28-2009 at 3:07 pm
I like how Little Shop and Sweeney Todd contradict the “murder isn’t usually found in musicals” statement Linda made about Lizzie Borden post.
posted by Ethan on 9-28-2009 at 3:25 pm
I must join the Evil Dead: The Musical love. It was easily the best production I’ve seen. Just fantastically hilarious.
posted by Peripa on 9-28-2009 at 3:31 pm
In high school English class, I was involved in the making of “Beowulf 2000,” including such gems as “Cheer Up, Hrothgar” (from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory), “Grendel’s Gonna Get His Way Tonight” (from West Side Story), and even “I Feel Pretty.” It was pretty fabulous, actually.
posted by Erin on 9-28-2009 at 3:35 pm
How about the Anne Frank musical? The original was in the 80s, but there’s another production that was done in Madrid:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/08/arts/08arts-ANNEFRANKMUS_BRF.html
posted by Lesley on 9-28-2009 at 3:36 pm
Stephen Sondheim’s “Sweeny Todd” was a stage musical before the film version. The “Little Shop” movie musical was also based on an existing stage musical, which in turn was based on the non-musical cult film of the ’60’s (with Jack Nicholson playing the great bit of the masochist at the dentist’s office that Bill Murray plays in the musical film version).
posted by Derek on 9-28-2009 at 3:56 pm
Anyone ever catch the show “Vampire Lesbians of Sodom”? Has to be the strangest show I’ve ever seen.
posted by Anne on 9-28-2009 at 3:59 pm
re: carrie musical….did betty buckley reprise her role as Mis collins from the movie or did she take on the meatier role of Mrs. White?
posted by Lewen on 9-28-2009 at 4:00 pm
I saw “Lord of the Rings: The Musical” in London, and the very best bit was when Aragorn forgot his lines. As my friend Niall put it later, the speech degenerated to:
“Friends,.. Romans,.. Something about an Orc…”
posted by Jen - The Alien Spouse on 9-28-2009 at 4:31 pm
Tanz der Vampire is one of my favorites on this list. When it moved to Broadway it was thought to be too cerebral for the American audience and a bunch of insipid jokes were put in. I do love the score, but I’ve always loved Jim Steinman’s work.
Carrie the Musical was hopelessly cheesy except for the songs Carrie and her mother share. I believe Betty Buckley was the mother for those who have asked.
Sweeney Todd was also an adaptation. Sondheim’s was an adaptation of Christopher Bond’s play in the West End, and that play was a variation on the original story of Sweeney (A String of Pearls) that ran in the penny dreadfuls in England in the late 1830s. In the original story, if memory serves me correctly, Sweeney had no daughter. He was just a murderous thief, and Mrs. Lovett still served her role in the story. Bond added the revenge element of the judge, Johanna, and Sweeney’s wife.
posted by Jennifer Vernon on 9-28-2009 at 5:18 pm
I stage-managed Jekyll and Hyde: The Musicale in high school. Not sure how close it was to R.L. Stevenson’s book, but it was almost a comedy, from backstage, at least.
posted by kc on 9-28-2009 at 5:45 pm
Don’t forget Bat Boy: The Musical based on The Weekly World News!
posted by Whaleman on 9-28-2009 at 5:50 pm
How about “Shrek: The Musical”? I really never thought we’d see that happen!
posted by Nicole on 9-28-2009 at 5:55 pm
They made a parody musical of Silence of the Lambs. It’s called SILENCE! The Musical and contains such songs as Are You About A Size 14, In the Dark with a Maniac, and a few I can’t say with cursing.
On a side note, I actually have all the songs from Jane Eyre on my iPod.
posted by Sam on 9-28-2009 at 5:58 pm
To those who have noted that murder actually pops up a surprising amount in musicals — I’m sorry, you’re right. Even after I sent this off, I thought, “Wait, what about Sweeney Todd…” So, I guess, anything can be put to music. The question is — should it?
Who’s ready for “Twilight: The Musical”? Maybe “The OJ Simpson Story: The Musical”?
posted by Linda on 9-28-2009 at 6:39 pm
One time while in NYC during my junior year of college several friends and I saw Tanz Der Vampire. At the time i thought i was terrible. Not too sure how i would perceive it today. When i first saw the title of this post, i mused as to whether or not Tanz Der Vampire would be on the list. Thanks for not letting me down!
posted by Izzi on 9-28-2009 at 6:43 pm
Oh, and “Friends… Romans.. Something about an orc” made me laugh out loud!
posted by Linda on 9-28-2009 at 6:45 pm
First off, shame on you for leaving out Batman: The Musical.
http://www.freewebs.com/batman_themusical/
Secondly, in regards to #5, there have been plenty of musicals about murder. Chicago, Sweeney Todd, and Little Shop Of Horrors, just to name a few off the top of my head.
posted by Troy on 9-28-2009 at 7:39 pm
In high school we did the musical “Lucky Stiff,” which is the musical adaptation of ‘Weekend and Bernies.”
At one point the body does a tap dance. Very funny.
posted by taylor on 9-28-2009 at 7:56 pm
What about “Spiderman: Turn Off The Dark” that’s currently in production for Broadway? I’m sorry, but even music by U2 can’t possibly save this disaster, can it?
http://spidermanonbroadway.marvel.com/
posted by CJ on 9-28-2009 at 8:11 pm
you missed gone with the wind, the musical. it was in the 70’s i believe.
posted by ricky on 9-28-2009 at 8:23 pm
As the NYT review of Lizzie Borden the rock musical said, “What other show in town can say that its high point is a song (“Why Are All These Heads Off”) about decapitated pigeons?” It isn’t too late to see it for yourself – the show run Thurs-Sat through Oct 17. Hear music clips and see photos at http://lizziebordentheshow.com/index.php/axe/media
posted by Liz G on 9-28-2009 at 8:41 pm
I have my calendar marked to go and see “Dark Side of the Moon–the Ballet!”
posted by cbanana on 9-28-2009 at 8:42 pm
How about “2001: A Space Odyssey”, featuring John S. Hall (King Missile), James Kochalka (American Elf)?
http://www.odysseyalbum.com/
It was never performed as a stage show, but it was performed live in concert twice.
posted by Russell on 9-28-2009 at 8:47 pm
To some degree, ‘Clockwork Orange’ was a musical
posted by Amy on 9-28-2009 at 8:52 pm
How about LEOPOLD AND LOEB as inspiration for ‘Thrill Me’
posted by Amy on 9-28-2009 at 8:56 pm
You totally forgot “Silence of the Lambs” the musical.
http://www.playbill.com/news/article/109609-Silence%21_The_Musical_to_Play_Off-Broadway%27s_Bleecker_Street_Theatre
posted by Dave on 9-28-2009 at 8:59 pm
http://topgunthemusical.com/
posted by Kevin on 9-28-2009 at 9:54 pm
How about a musical “Bill and Ted’s excellent adventure”? Oh and is that supposed to be Aramaic in the Ben Hur text?
posted by gckittehmom on 9-28-2009 at 10:28 pm
What about one of the other granddaddies of all Broadway bombs: Big: The Musical. I gave away my ticket to this after reading a scathing review in the New York Times. The friend I gave the ticket to was very unhappy with me.
posted by Philpott on 9-28-2009 at 10:45 pm
Fellowship! The Musical is a parody of Fellowship of the Ring, and was BRILLIANT.
posted by Snobahr on 9-28-2009 at 11:24 pm
I remember listening to the score of High Fidelity: The Musical. I thought the songs were wonderfully done, the lyrics brilliant, but after 6 or so pieces I couldn’t take it any more. The songstyles might have changed but by God the whining stayed too consistent…
And Liz G, maybe it’s not decapitation exactly but what about Tomfoolery and “Poisoning Pigeons in the Park?”
posted by VM on 9-29-2009 at 1:33 am
When the Lord of the Rings musical opened, it actually had quite a media release. I was working at a school not long after it first opened in London, and the (Midwest U.S.) school had LOTR: The Musical mouse pads. I asked the music teacher if I could take one and have it proudly displayed in my house, although I’m sure there will be little chance for me to see the musical here in the U.S. Furthermore, I heard more negative reviews than positive.
posted by Amauriel on 9-29-2009 at 2:46 am
Batboy the musical is pretty brilliant (it’s about the tabloid batboy..)
I’m also a big fan of Ruthless- it’s kind of a blend of “The Bad Seed” and “All about Eve.”
posted by kristin on 9-29-2009 at 9:27 am
I saw Lord of the Rings the musical in London. The set and the guy who played Golem were AMAZING! But other than that it was a painfully long corny musical.
posted by Megan on 9-29-2009 at 12:01 pm
how about ‘the nightman cometh’?
posted by ap on 9-29-2009 at 12:25 pm
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest: The Musical sounds like something from Mel Brooks… The Producers meets Cuckoo’s Nest. Now, THAT I could enjoy!
posted by Hyacinth on 9-29-2009 at 1:29 pm
Oh, and thanks for the remark about CATS.
“Musicals have been made from stranger stuff—think on the premise of Cats…”
I really thought that was the stupidest musical I have ever seen, and I have seem my share of musicals (my favorite is Starlight Express, which does not fit this article).
posted by Hyacinth on 9-29-2009 at 1:38 pm
No one has mentioned “Assassins” by Sondheim. Any show that has a duet between Squeaky Fromme and John Hinckley has GOT to be on the weirder end of the spectrum …
posted by terri on 9-29-2009 at 2:14 pm
Although it wasn’t an adaptation, Roller Derby: The Musical was the last cocaine driven show I worked on. After it opened to the most scathing reviews of any production I’ve been involved with (including the movie Leonard Pt.VI)the producer asked us “Is the show really that bad?” “Yes” we replied. “Well, why didn’t you say something before we opened?” “You were paying us and giving us drugs!”
posted by Jim on 9-29-2009 at 2:58 pm
One that startled me was “Highlander: the Opera”. Corny as it sounds, that was seriously the title, and it wasn’t played as a farce either. It was an opera set in the universe of the 1986 film “Highlander” and the later TV series (though I understand it followed the TV series continuity more closely). It did away with the Queen music, and instead had an entirely original operatic score, written by one of the composers of incidental music for the TV series. A concept album was done, with the hope that it would spark enough interest to get it actually produced, and there were clips available online. (Not a bad strategy; that’s also how the musical version of “Les Miserables” got started.) Musically, it did sound very good, but it was a bit jarring. AFAIK, it was never produced, so we’ll never know if it would have been any good. Mind you, it could’ve been very successful; doomed romance and a high body count are, after all, features of most great operas.
posted by Calli Arcale on 9-29-2009 at 5:11 pm
Terri, don’t forget the pep talk John Wilkes Booth gives Lee Harvey Oswald. Amazingly, I’ve seen JFK assassination theories that make the plot of “Assassins” look eminently reasonable. (Love the musical, though.)
posted by Seanette on 9-29-2009 at 5:13 pm
Hmmm…let’s see
“Star Wars: The Musical” (perhaps with a nice opera-y bit between Luke and Darth Vader, about Vader being Anakin Skywalker and thus Luke’s father?)
“Twilight: The Musical” (where Edward sings longingly about how much he wants to drink Bella’s blood, and Bella has a song wherein she describes Edward using all the descriptions used for him in the book…oh, wait, never mind, we don’t want the audience committing suicide)
“Napoleon Dynamite: The Musical” (with a lovely song and dance from Pedro as part of his campaign)
Ooo! I know! How about “The American Revolution: The Musical”? You can get some great material out of the Boston Tea Party, I can see a nice percussive number being made out of the Stamp Act, and something low and mournful for winter in Valley Forge.
posted by Kate on 9-30-2009 at 3:26 pm
How about “Buffy: the Musical”, from the Buffy the Vampire Slayer tv series. Okay, okay, it wasn’t a full stage production, just an episode, but still…
posted by Christine (: on 10-1-2009 at 8:19 am
I saw Jane Eyre: the Musical at my university! VERY well done – I loved it!
posted by Katherine on 10-5-2009 at 8:32 am
How about ALIEN: The Musical? The tag line could be, ‘In space…nobody can hear you sing!’
However, I’m surprised that “Moulin Rouge” is not already on Broadway. That film screams BROADWAY…
posted by wolfgang on 10-19-2009 at 10:48 pm