All tagged The Bridges of Madison County
A while back, I wrote a piece about flop musicals that deserved a second chance on Broadway. Many of you wrote to me and wondered why I hadn’t mentioned any recent shows. When I write about this kind of topic, I typically look at older titles and prefer to wait for the dust to settle on more recent shows in order to gain some objectivity. This does not mean I haven’t enjoyed some of the short-lived shows of the last decade. It may be too soon to say that any of them deserve revivals, but I think it is fair to say that some of them deserve a second look. So, as to assuage those who think I’m trapped in the past, here are 10 for 10, ten musicals from the last ten years that I think had plenty to offer and most likely deserve a second look.
Every season, we are inundated with a long list of musicals that are in development and that are based on famous source material. We speculate about their potential and wonder if they will work, often resigning ourselves to the fact that they will never live up to the movie, play or book that we adore. Sometimes, we are surprised when we enter the theatre and find that the music and lyrics, along with a fresh viewpoint, concept and/or casting choice can illuminate the piece in ways we hadn't imagined. This article is a valentine to the musicals that DID work and either captured their source material beautifully, or improved up them. I am limiting my list to pieces that I personally saw AFTER I had read the play, book or watched the movie from which they derived.
