Aida

The Elton John / Tim Rice musical. Not the Verdi opera or the 1952 musical My Darlin' Aida. 

Revisiting 2000's Aida I see that it laid some groundwork for 2003's Wicked. The serious woman chooses political rebellion over romance. The shallow leading man finds his angsty side. The privileged woman sings a comedy song about fashion in act one and a heartbroken ballad in act two before taking political power.

A key difference is that Wicked focuses on the friendship between the leading ladies while Aida devotes about 7 songs and 2 reprises to the chemistry free romance. Critics were cold but Headley won a well deserved Tony and the show ran 4 years. The score won a Tony too but it was up against two LaChuisa scores which likely cancelled each other's votes.

Now I suppose I'll have to research My Darlin' Aida.

Flower Drum Song v.2

In 2002 Flower Drum Song was revived on Broadway with a new book. Mei Lei had a tragic backstory, Linda had a sassy gay assistant, and the roles of showman and conservative father were combined into that of the conflicted theater/club owner. The show received mixed reviews but received a stellar cast album and opportunities for regional licensing.

DAVID HENRY HWANG: "The show, which originally arrived on Broadway in 1958, had fallen off the cultural radar, regarded as quaint, patronizing and old-fashioned. But I had always admired Rodgers and Hammerstein's ambition to write a musical about America through the eyes of Asians, who even today tend to be regarded as perpetual foreigners. And notwithstanding shows like ''Miss Saigon'' and ''Pacific Overtures,'' which are set overseas, ''Flower Drum Song'' has long stood alone as the only Broadway musical ever produced about Asian-Americans....

Over time, we evolved the story of a rundown theater in San Francisco's Chinatown, whose patriarch clings to his dreams of performing Chinese opera despite an ever-shrinking audience. The story of this theater's transformation into a Western-style nightclub became a metaphor for assimilation."

The Fly

At one point in Act II, Mr. Okulitch, his skin now covered in hideous scales, is suspended by wires. He enters his studio upside down, crawling along a ceiling crossbeam and then slithering head-first down a metal column, singing all the while. This is something voice students are not prepared for in conservatory training. ~ New York Times.

Just about any subject is ripe for opera. The film world and lyric stage have been influencing and stealing from each other since the days of silents. Brundlefly is no less reasonable a character for musical amplification than Rigoletto. ~ L.A. Times