Be More Chill

The musical Be More Chill had a short run but the cast album has inspired a rabid fan base. I was introduced to it by the shows breakout song "Michael in the Bathroom." The premise reminds me of Little Shop of Horrors. Each features a self-loathing protagonist goaded by a malevolent force into harming others for the sake of his crush. Audrey II wants to eat the world. The Squip wants to control it. The Squip in the novel could be cruel but it has been upgraded to full super villain in the musical. Seymour wants Audrey. Jeremy wants the underwritten Christine. She takes a back seat to Michael, the leading man's mistreated best friend. They get the duet and the arc. Hence the fan base (and the fan artists) focus on the bro-mance.

There's a lot of tonal whiplash on the album. I'm curious to see how a live production balances the black comedy with the uglier themes of depression and sexual assault. Particularly after watching season 3 of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend balance these so well.

Little Shop of Horrors

I've touched on Little Shop twice before, but wanted to give it a full post.

Reviews of the recent American Psycho musical have said there's no way to make the murderous protagonist sympathetic. This got me thinking about Seymour Krelborn. I mock (and lust after) Patrick Bateman. I pity Sweeney Todd. I genuinely like Seymour. From the moment I hear the song "Skid Row" I'm on his side. How does he do it?

Well, like Sweeney, he has a loathsome antagonist and a seductive accomplice. Like Sweeney he also does some truly awful things in Act Two. Unlike Sweeney he holds on to the possibility of redemption. *** spoiler? *** The movie gave him a happy ending, but it left a sour aftertaste. We may want him to get away with it but understand when he doesn't. ***

So why did this popular show flop when it opened on Broadway in 2003? Some said the stage was too big, the performances too arch, the material too dated. An Encores concert in 2015 showed that the show still works if the larger-than-life characters are played with honesty.

*** EDIT: Seeing the show again I realize that Seymour and Audrey's fatal flaw is their crippling self-loathing. It's not greed as they don't really take advantage of their new found income. They're given several opportunities to escape their fate but keep making poor choices from a place of low self-worth.

Starlight Express

Co-worker: "Why are you drawing gay Transformers?" 

Me: Because Starlight Express!

I'd been told the story was "The Little Engine that Could" on roller skates. It starts that way but goes into much more... interesting places.

Frank Rich of the New York Times noticed as well. In his 1987 review he wrote:

"Andrew Lloyd Webber modestly explains that he conceived his new musical, ''Starlight Express,'' as an entertainment ''event'' for children who love trains. Over two numbing hours later, you may find yourself wondering exactly whose children he has in mind...

All the women are subservient carriages vying for the favors of mostly abusive male locomotives - with only an androgynous male caboose occupying lower social status. This hierarchical scheme is reinforced by Ms. Phillips's muscle-flexing choreography, seemingly inspired by male physical-culture magazines, and by the robotic costumes, which emphasize codpieces for the men and tight corsets and miniskirts for their groupies."

Weird Romance

This summer Ellen Greene reprised her signature role at the Encores concert of Little Shop of Horrors. The role of Audrey had been written for Faith Prince but a television contract prevented her from performing in the scheduled premiere. The role went to Ellen and history was made.

Ellen had already originated roles in several Off-Broadway musicals and would again. After co-starring in the Little Shop film she reunited with Alan Menken to play contrasting roles in Weird Romance. Both women were trapped inside machines and the shows emphasized ensemble rather than the star. Critics dismissed the show but there are some interesting ballads and comic numbers.

Adapting Alice in Wonderland

Oz books have a quest structure that lends itself to adaptation. Wonderland books do not. Walt Disney managed to give Alice a small arc and some introspective ballads but the film was criticized for a "lack of heart." Recent musical adaptations have taken great liberties to give Alice a goal and an antagonist.

1985's Alice is pursued by a terrifying Godzilla-like Jabberwocky... and meets an equally terrifying Carol Channing.

2011's Wonderland ages Alice up to explore adult neuroses. Why is her inner child represented as a  dominatrix? Well she's got some issues.

2015's wonder.land sets the whole thing in cyberspace as a group of teens use their online avatars to cope with their anxiety's. Some critics found it brilliant while others found it incomprehensible. 

TV, films and video games have since turned Wonderland's characters into figures of fun, action and horror. Who's your favorite Alice?

Return to the Forbidden Planet

Few works symbolize the affection Britons hold for the period more than "Return to the Forbidden Planet." This West End hit, scheduled to open in New York next Sunday at the Variety Arts Theater Off Broadway, is based on the 1956 sci-fi movie "Forbidden Planet" and relocates the plot of "The Tempest" to outer space. But its pulling power derives principally from its exhortation to the audience to sing, clap and dance to vintage hits such as "Great Balls of Fire" and "Shake, Rattle and Roll."... In London, to the disgust of the impresario Cameron Mackintosh, "Forbidden Planet" beat his production of "Miss Saigon" for the 1990 Olivier Award for Best Musical. ~ New York Times. 1991.

When I wrote it, it was the plot that came first and then the songs suggested themselves. I didn’t try and write a scene around Great Balls of Fire. I took Shakespeare’s actual tempest scene in The Tempest and thought “What’s the obvious song?” If you’re in outer space it’s going to be an asteroid storm so therefore it’s obvious to use Jerry Lee Lewis’s Great Balls of Fire, which is cut around Shakespeare’s tempest scene. ~ Bob Carlton Interview. 2015.

Starmites

It's hard to be the Diva, it's hard to be Divine
To live the life of fever with your guts on the line!
It's hard to be the Diva, the stories I could tell
My life may seem like heaven, babe, but boy is it hell!

~ Starmites

We follow Skyscraper with another dreaming heroine. Starmites is not a great show but it can a fun guilty pleasure. The best song, DIVA, made a positive impression at the 1989 Tony Awards ceremony and the show makes a family friendly choice for school and community groups. The show received new attention when it was featured in the documentary Guys 'N Divas: Battle of the High School Musicals. 

Shock Treatment

In 1981 the team behind the cult smash The Rocky Horror Show gathered as much of the original cast as they could for a sequel. Tim Curry was unwilling or unavailable to reprise Dr. Frank-N-Furter so a new set of villains were invented to torment Brad and Janet in Shock Treatment. A Screen Actors Guild Strike, limited distribution and mixed reviews plagued the film and it disappeared from memory.

In 2015 Richard O'Brien finally allowed a stage adaptation which premiered at the King’s Head Theatre in Islington, London. This version kept the songs, cut some of the extraneous characters and added more nudity. Reviews were enthusiastic.