Pasek and Paul have been well known names in American musical theatre for some time, thanks to the ongoing success of shows such as EDGES, along with their work on SMASH and even the recent OLD NAVY TV campaign. Their popularity in London continues to grow, with their 2012 musical DOGFIGHT receiving its European premiere […]
The post INTERVIEW: Pasek and Paul and Peter Duchan on Dogfight, Adaptations, and Contemporary Theater appeared first on The NewMusicalTheatre.com Green Room.
A couple of weeks ago two show announcements came on the same day that would have had the writers of Forbidden Broadway rubbing their hands together with glee. In a West End market currently saturated with revivals, and original productions of 1980s ‘mega-musicals,’ it was revealed that Evita (1978) and Cats (1981), both hits by British […]
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One of the greatest problems in constructing a musical is the structure. Despite having the topic, plot and characters all in place, the hardest decision seems to be in what order to let it unravel. Traditional musical theatre post-Oklahoma! developed a fairly rigid structure that few book writers strayed from – the reason mainly being, […]
The post Interval Issues: A show of two halves appeared first on The NewMusicalTheatre.com Green Room.
I recently attended an evening of philosophy and music, led by Professor Bill Brewer of King’s College London, which explored the relationship between music and the mind. The relationship between the two may seem to be self explanatory, but the aim of the discussion was to explore and ask the question why some music is […]
The post “My New Philosophy” – The Connection Between Music and the Mind appeared first on The NewMusicalTheatre.com Green Room.
Last week I was lucky enough to spend time with composer Andrew Lippa ahead of his new show The Life of the Party at the Menier Chocolate Factory in London. The production, he describes, is much more theatrical than a concert and more along the lines of a revue. Whilst Sondheim has Marry Me a […]
The post A Composer’s Take on Award Success – In Conversation with Andrew Lippa appeared first on The NewMusicalTheatre.com Green Room.
In many creative aspects we are taught from a young age that versatility is key to success. Actors and performers spend half of their life worrying about finding their niche, and later worry about being typecast and stuck in a particular casting bracket. There is great debate to be had in this topic – some […]
The post Versatility – the key to success for musical theatre composers? appeared first on The NewMusicalTheatre.com Green Room.
Last week marked the re-opening of The Apollo Theatre in the West End, nearly four months after it closed, following the roof collapse mid-show on December 19, 2013. The event shocked London, and also the rest of the country, calling into question not only the capital’s many Victorian buildings, but public buildings as a whole. […]
The post Up in the Gods appeared first on The NewMusicalTheatre.com Green Room.
Broadway imports have often kept the West End alive, and in recent years have given London a refreshing wave of new musicals. Over the past year, celebrated hits such as Once and The Book of Mormon have made the transition, often within a year of opening on Broadway and winning handfuls of Tony Awards. It […]
The post Delaying a transfer – “Fools rush in where angels fear to tread” appeared first on The NewMusicalTheatre.com Green Room.
Star ratings attached to reviews have long been a heavily debated issue. Most reviews in British national papers, which are still held in highest regard, never used to add star ratings, relying instead on the text to give the reader a full picture of a show’s merits and limitations. We are constantly being told that […]
The post Three Stars Good – Two Stars Bad appeared first on The NewMusicalTheatre.com Green Room.
The internet and social media has taken over so many aspects of everyday life in ways that the current ‘Generation Z’ will never quite be able to understand. Breaking news stories from around the world are now updated live and often as they are happening, defying the traditional methods and means of news communication. It’s […]
The post Gossip’s Worth Its Weight in Gold… appeared first on The NewMusicalTheatre.com Green Room.
As a Director one of the hardest things to ever know is how an audience is going to react. Locked up in a rehearsal room, you get to know the text better than anybody else, often to a point where you are totally unsure if anything is engaging, funny or even makes sense. You have […]
The post To Stand Or Not To Stand? appeared first on The NewMusicalTheatre.com Green Room.
This weekend I was lucky enough to see the London premiere of Frank Wildhorn’s 2009 musical Bonnie & Clyde in an inventive production by the musical theatre students at Arts Ed – one of London’s top drama schools. Despite holding amateur rights, the production was as professional as many fringe musicals, thanks in the main to […]
The post That Frank! The Shadow of Flop Musicals appeared first on The NewMusicalTheatre.com Green Room.
In my last post I discussed the current state of commercial musicals in the West End, and how commercialism by its very nature presents challenges to those writing and producing new material. Without an established benefactor behind a show, or dozens of experienced ‘angels’ willing to open their chequebooks, exactly how are new musicals funded? […]
The post Crowdfunding and the Future of New Musical Theatre in London and Beyond appeared first on The NewMusicalTheatre.com Green Room.
London’s West End was once the home of new British musicals, and thanks to business driven individuals such as Andrew Lloyd Webber and Cameron Mackintosh these iconic shows were exported around the world at an alarming rate. The 1980s saw a boom for original musicals in the West End, and as society was enjoying the […]
The post What’s in a Name? The Passport to Success in the Commercial West End appeared first on The NewMusicalTheatre.com Green Room.
