Adaptation Overload: Is it Good or Bad?

           

          If you were to take a survey asking fans of musical theatre if they think that theatre nowadays is lacking originality, nine out of ten would probably say yes. It seems like we’re always complaining about the number of jukebox musicals and adaptations we see every year. Nearly every hit on Broadway now is an adaptation. The only exception that comes to mind is Next to Normal. But is the lack of originality in theatre really as bad as we all make it out to be?

Personally, I think it’s a blessing and a curse.

First, the blessing part. There have been some great musicals that have been adaptations. In fact, my favorite musical of all time, The Producers, was adapted from a movie. There are some stories that just seem great for the stage, and have proved that they’re even better when they have song and dance blended into them.

But at the same time, this trend is also a curse. For every great adaptation, for every story that was made better by becoming a musical comedy, you have the shows that are just terrible and were only created because the people behind them knew they would turn a huge profit. That’s why we have shows like Mama Mia and Legally Blonde. They’re mediocre at best, but because they carry familiar names of movies and 80’s pop groups, they sell. People go toward what they’re familiar with, so adaptations of blockbuster movies and jukebox musicals consisting of the music of famous bands and musicians usually become hits. This wouldn’t be such a bad thing if it didn’t mean that original, creative musicals don’t get as much attention as they deserve.

Sadly, it looks like this is a pattern that is going to continue. As I said, these adaptations sell well, so producers are going to produce them. It’s only natural that we see more of them than we see musicals such as [Title of Show].

So what can theatre fans do instead of sitting around and complaining about the lack of originality on Broadway? We could go see more original shows that don’t seem to be getting much attention, see some of the new shows looking for their big break Off-Broadway, and attend more regional theatre shows. If you look around, you’ll be surprised by the amount of wacky and creative shows are out there.

The trend of jukebox and adaptation musicals probably isn’t going to end anytime soon. After all, these types of shows are making producers millions of dollars because of their successes. But don’t be afraid to give some of them a chance because some end up being great, and remember, originality in theatre isn’t completely dead – sometimes it’s just harder to find those gems out there.

-Marina