Musicals to Recommend

[Cierra_Dancer]

Ok with A Chorus Line, I meant you need to see/hear the BROADWAY version, apparently the movie version is crap. I only know of one person who liked it.

[SpringHeelJack]

Yeah, the movie version of "A Chorus Line" is widely acknowledged as terrible. It's like a perfect example of everything a movie musical should not be. It's amazing how they could take such excellent source material and screw it up. Well, not amazing, but saddening.

And Dreamgirls was indeed a Broadway musical first. Go for the concert cast CD, it's two discs and contains literally almost all of the show. The Broadway cast album was rereleased in a two disc set in December, which you should look for if you like the show. The second disc is mostly fluff like karaoke tracks and a remix, but the first disc includes three songs thought to be lost (including "It's All Over"), and it's also worthwhile to hear Jennfer Holliday's performance and the stellar Loretta Devine singing "Ain't No Party", Lorell's big number that was sadly cut from the film.

If you dislike "Grease", get the Broadway CD. The movie is a totally different animal from the show. The show on Broadway was cute and nostalgic, and had a sense of fun about it, and the movie took anything good about the show and jettisoned it in favor of overblown 70s music. Since then, every revival of Grease has suffered in that they try to make it more like the movie, because people come in essentially expecting to see the movie acted out live, which is stupid.

If you dislike the movie "Tarzan", I don't see you liking the Broadway version. It's very Phil Collins-y, which is not so cool. He's (to some people, not myself so much) a decent enough pop artist, but doesn't really know how to write for musical theatre. There's one or two good renditions, and a talented cast, but if you don't like the movie, I can't see you enjoying the musical.

If you get the chance to see "Sweeney Todd" in Toronto, SEE IT. See it see it see it.

And I like to drive the point home for Company

[Billy Moon]

Yeah, the movie version of "A Chorus Line" is widely acknowledged as terrible. It's like a perfect example of everything a movie musical should not be. It's amazing how they could take such excellent source material and screw it up. Well, not amazing, but saddening.

How do the two differ from oneanother? I've seen the movie, and I can't say I liked it, athough some of the songs were good - especially "Nothing".

[SpringHeelJack]

Well, if you liked the songs, most of them are in the stage show. I;m trying to recall what ones were written for the movie, and I think "Let Me Dance For You" replaced a much better song called "The Music and the Mirror", and "Surprise" replaced...a monologue...I think. I might be wrong. The movie also made Zach and Cassie the focus of the plot, where in the stage show it's literally the story of all the auditioning folk, with Zach sort of moderating, and IMO to make two characters the focal point kind of contradicts what the story was initially about. Because of this change, Cassie also got the song "What I Did For Love", which was sung by Morales (the one who sang "Nothing") in the stage show. The change kinda makes sense given that they were trying to make Cassie a more important character, but it was still a bad decision to begin with. Plus "What I Did For Love", arguably the show's best known song, was abridged to like a verse and half, which bugged me. The gay character Paul was almost entirely excised, because the director thought gay people were no longer "shocking", which I think really sums up how clueless Richard Attenborough was about the material to begin with. He was just a bad choice to direct the film.

[Flanger-Hanger]

Ooh, ah thought ah might dig up this 'ear ol' t'read to see wot musicals ah've added to me list (yes I feel like typing this way today).

-The Drowsy Chaperone (have a couple of songs)

-Spamalot (have a couple of songs)

-Guys and Dolls (have some songs)

-Chicago (seen film and have some songs)

-Camelot (have some songs from original cast)

-Carousel (have some songs from motion picture soundtrack)

-Funny Girl (seen film and have some songs from films soundtrack)

-The King and I (have some songs from 1977 revival)

-The Phantom of the Opera (have seen stage production, own film and both 2 CD soundtracks to movie and original London cast)

-Singin' in the Rain (have 50th anniversary soundtrack and seen film)

-My Fair Lady (own 2-Disc DVD of film and have original London cast recording (a single track unfortunately) and I still want motion picture soundtrack)

-Gigi (have seen film and have original Broadway cast but really want motion picture soundtrack)

-Show Boat (have seen both 1936 and 1951 films and own 1993 Toronto cast recording)

-Hello, Dolly! (own movie and motion picture soundtrack)

-Cinderella (seen 1997 TV movie and clips of the other TV productions and own 1957 TV version album)

-Evita (seen film and have 2006 London cast recording)

-Wicked (seen stage version 3 times, have CD)

-Les Miserables (seen stage version and have CD)

-Titanic (have CD)

-The Producers (seen stage version and have CD)

-Young Frankenstein (have soundtrack)

-Avenue Q (have soundtrack)

-The Sound of Music (own film and soundtrack to film)

-Hairspray (own movie and have CD for movie)

-Sweeney Todd: the Demon Barber of Fleet Street (have deluxe soundtrack for film and have some songs from original cast, will probably buy DVD of stage version which I have seen clips of)

-Into the Woods (have original Broadway cast recording, REALLY want DVD of production but it is hard to locate and really expensive, though I have seen clips)

-Oklahoma! (own film and have original New York cast recording)

-The Music Man (own original film and 2003 TV movie CD)

-Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (have soundtrack)

-Easter Parade (own film and have some songs from it)

-Yankee Doodle Dandy (have seen film)

-Newsies (own DVD and CD)

-The Happiest Millionaire (own DVD and CD)

-The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band (own DVD and have downloaded album)

-Babes in Toyland (have DVD and soundtrack and March of the Wooden Toy Soldiers film)

-Pete's Dragon (have DVD and CD)

-Bedknobs and Broomsticks (have DVD and CD)

-Willy Wonka an the Chocolate Factory (own DVD and have soundtrack)

-Beauty and the Beast [Broadway](seen stage version and have CD for stage version)

-The Lion King [Broadway] (have seen stage version)

-Mary Poppins [film] (own DVD and have soundtrack)

Have Seen/ heard and don't like:

-West Side Story
-Rocky Horror Picture Show (don't like rock musicals)
-An American in Paris (what's the plot?)
-Rent (what's the big deal?)
-Grease
-High School Musical (although I'll have to force myself to like it if I do get that job at the Disney Store)
-Little Shop of Horrors (except for title song)
-Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (it's the child Mary Poppins and Willy Wonka gave birth to, except Mary was smoking and drinking while pregnant)
Mamma Mia! (not an Abba fan)
-Annie (it's a grey area musical for me, I got nothing against it but I'm not really into it either)
-Jesus Christ Superstar (once again, rock music and religon)
-Cats (some songs are good and I've seen the filmed stage version but...I don't know)

Ones I'll try:

-Oliver!
-1776
-Pippin
-Company
-South Pacific
-State Fair

I think that covers everything.

[DaveWadding]

no South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut??

BEST. MUSICAL. EVAR.

[Flanger-Hanger]

no South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut??

BEST. MUSICAL. EVAR.

Oh yes I like it and I have both the CD and DVD but I'm not counting animated musicals.

[pinkrenata]

I didn't notice two of my favorites mentioned:
<i>Thoroughly Modern Millie</i> (underrated movie and pretty awesome show) and the glorious <i>Moulin Rouge!</i>