tcmusicals

Using as source material the videos linked to the wiki schedule page illustrating musical theatre, the dvd seen in class covering the development and making of Taboo, Caroline, or Change, Wicked, and Avenue Q, as well as The Fantasticks, speculate on aspects of the shows presented that appear to have led to their success and/or failure in the periods in which they were developed. In other words, why have some shows succeeded while others have failed, during the period when they were created?

Musical theater is a risky business. It is often impossible to tell whether or not a show will be successful until it has won a Tony or it is closing its doors. To invest in musical theater is somewhat of a gamble, however there are a few things to look for when judging the future success of a show. In Show Business, the film we watched in class, we were able to observe the trajectory of several musical shows on Broadway. In my opinion, Wicked was the most successful of all the shows because even though it did not receive the Tony for Best Musical, the show is still extremely popular worldwide. Avenue Q won the Tony, however I don't believe it has achieved as much popularity as Wicked because of the nature of the show's content. Taboo and Caroline, or Change were both good shows, but lacked many elements that create lasting popularity. The main elements that I believe contributed to Wicked's success were the musical score and the message of the play.

As Nicholas Coster pointed out in class, the music of a show is extremely important to its success. The music in Wicked was outstanding. The first time I ever heard "Popular" before seeing the show, the catchy tune was immediately stuck in my head. Each song of the musical suites the mood perfectly and the lyrics are extremely uplifting or comical. "Popular" is a comical song that makes fun of Galinda's lifestyle but "Defying Gravity" or "For Good" capture the uplifting message of the play that it's okay to be different. The music can be enjoyed by people of any age. In contrast, the music of Avenue Q is also well done but the content and lyrics of the songs limits the audience that can enjoy it. A 10 year old going to see Avenue Q won't enjoy the song "Everybody's a Little Bit Racist". Although it is quite funny, their music can only reach a limited audience which will affect the popularity of a show. Taboo also had great music written by Boy George, but they still had the same problem, the lyrics cannot reach as wide of an audience as Wicked's songs.

In my opinion, the central message or theme of a play should be uplifting to generate a lot of income. Tragedies or shows with content that is less "family friendly" must have a really great show because they're going against the odds with ticket sales. On Broadway, shows can often make more off paraphernalia than from ticket sales alone. Wicked can easily churn out Galinda and Elphaba dolls, whereas Taboo or Avenue Q can't really create family friendly paraphernalia. Idina Menzel received a ton of fan mail from little girls who love her character because she inspires them. Girls right now face a lot of self esteem issues, so this play is able to reach that younger audience while still having some jokes that can appeal to adults as well. Wicked also has the "wow" factor that Broadway shows must possess with many incredible special effects such as the flying monkeys. Overall though, I think the most successful shows are those that can appeal to the widest audiences. Shows such as Wicked or Lion King have a greater chance of doing that than shows like Taboo or Spring Awakening simply because their age bracket is larger.