Welcome to the Musicals Thread, the Avocado’s space for anything and everything related to musical theatre! Every month I’ll post a discussion prompt, but please feel free to comment on other topics, from new discoveries to old favorites. If you have ideas for future prompts or would like to write a feature for the thread, let me know!
Musicals and movies grew up together and have long been sources of mutual inspiration – just ask Marc Bonanni:
I’d argue that it was in the 1990’s, though, with Beauty and the Beast (1993) and The Lion King (1997), that those ties grew even closer. These productions began the trend, still continuing today, of musicals mounted mainly based on the popularity of the movies that inspired them, invoking their iconic images and moments and considered a safe bet for producers. That said, the two media still have different strengths and weaknesses, capabilities and limitations, and the individual shows could still allow for innovation and creativity, not merely copy-pasting the film experience. Quoth Julie Taymor (in PBS’s Broadway: The American Musical), who won Tonys for her direction and costume design for The Lion King: “In the theater you can expect more from your audiences. They know they’re in a theater. The audience is not spoonfed absolute reality, but they come and they finish the sentences with you.”
And of course, not every 90’s show was a direct transfer from Hollywood, either. The hit rock musical Rent (1993) brought Puccini’s La bohème to contemporary New York. Once on This Island (1990) was based on Rosa Guy’s novel My Love, My Love; or, The Peasant Girl, a Caribbean retelling of “The Little Mermaid”. And The Drowsy Chaperone (1998) took inspiration from musical theatre history itself, following a lone man sitting in his apartment listening to a recording of the titular fictional 1920’s show.
What are your favorite/the most memorable examples of musical theatre from the 1990’s? If you’re not very familiar with this period, are you interested in changing that? Why or why not?
For a 90’s musical to be listed among my favorites, it has to have Emma Goldman in it. I’m torn between Assassins (1990) and Ragtime (1996), each a tale made up of multiple tales, with a dominating theme of disillusionment with the American dream.
Best Musical Tony winners (listed with the years of their original productions):
1991 – The Will Rogers Follies
1992 – Crazy for You
1992 – Kiss of the Spider Woman
1994 – Passion
1991 – Sunset Boulevard
1993 – Rent
1997 – Titanic
1997 – The Lion King
1999 – Fosse
1999 – Contact