Strange trend

[charliesmum]

So what is up with movies being turned into theatrical musicals lately? The latest I've heard of is The Wedding Singer, which, yeah, was sweet little movie, but I'm not sure it can translate into a play. The biggest part of the movie's charm was the cast. Pretty sure Drew Barrymore won't be reprising that role.

When did it start? Was it after Beauty and the Beast was so successful? Because it seems to be the MO of th entertainment industry: If it works once, beat the trend into the ground.

I also heard that The Producers the play is being turned into a movie, so maybe that will happen with all of them. See Footloose, the movie based on the musical that was based on the movie! Not starring Kevin Bacon.

Speaking of Kevin Bacon, I can actually link myself to him in that 6 degrees of Kevin Bacon game that was all the rage in the mid-ninties. Pretty cool, no?

The second weirdest trend is plays based on a particular muscian or rock band's music. Actually, way back in college I had this idea for a play based on David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust. I can't remember what my plot was, but it starred me as the Mary Sue Love interest. My opening scene would be a bunch of kids talking to each other about hearing the alien on the radio, singing Starman. It was a huge hit in my head.

Hurrah, almost 5. My motivation to work has been sliding waaaaay down lately. Gee. Wonder why.

Scabble online is waaaay too much fun. Am addicted now.

Would it be a complete Bridget Jones rip-off to write a story in diary form, but have it be an online blog? Or has that been done already?

Comments

[silverhill.livejournal.com]

I think the movies-into-musicals trend is much, much better than the pop-songs-into-musicals. At least with the movies, they're taking a good story and adding (hopefully good) music and lyrics. With the pop songs, they're taking songs that might not be that great to begin with and adding a weak book (that's a stretch to link the pre-written songs to the story).

I like Abba, but I have no interest in seeing Mama Mia. And that's the best of the bunch! (Good Vibrations was critically panned -- and had no audience.)

Movies into musicals can be great. The problem with that, though is the increasing over-reliance on movies for musical material. There's a fear of the unknown and a lack of creativity. ... That said, almost every musical ever written is based on some pre-existing source (books, movies, history, etc.) -- even ones you don't think are based on anything. (Try me. Name a musical you think is "original" and I'll tell you whether it is.)

Hairspray is expected to join The Producers in the movie-into-musical-into-movie genre.