It’s been more than a week since I last made an article for the column “Nuts and Bolts”. If you haven’t read that, you can check it out here. It’s basically the part here I made bite-sized comments on opera-related news items.
This time around, I would be analyzing the trends that occurred courtesy of this article from Broadway.com: the 10 Biggest Broadway Trends of the Decade. I would be picking a few at random from the list to comment on. Let’s get it on.
Stage-to-Screen Musicals
Perhaps you have noticed how some of my recent reviews are musicals and an opera the past 24 hours. And it’s usually because Hollywood has realized the potential gold mine that these musicals possess. I haven’t reviewed the film version of Les Miserables though. But for some that I have viewed so far, it’s been good. Chicago is still my favorite though and perhaps you couldn’t blame me on that. I am hesitant to watch Nine since for an Academy Award nominee, it received a lot of negative reviews. I have yet to see it then let’s see if I agree with the negative reviews.
Karaoke/Jukebox Musicals
No surprise here. While Mamma Mia is taking the lead among the top-selling karaoke musicals (at least according to our source website) on Broadway, right here in the Philippines, it’s Rak of Aegis that’s taking the Tagalog musical scene by storm. In case Rak of Aegis ends up as one of the Tagalog musicals with the most reruns, I will not be surprised.
Now going back to Broadway, the other karaoke musical that stands out among the rest is Rock of Ages. If Mamma Mia succeeded in staging a tribute worthy of mega-pop group ABBA, Rock of Ages succeeded in glorifying the glam rock music as seen on the playlist. Who would have thought mix tapes are good sources of musicals now? I should have realized that the moment I saw Moulin Rouge.
American Idols on Broadway
The runners-up must have realized that while American Idol is an opportunity for your 15 minutes of fame, a long term career in music is possible the moment they saw Jennifer Hudson earn awards for her role in “Dream Girls”. That may be a Hollywood film but it means a string of projects that followed for her. Some folks on my Twitter timeline would also discuss about the TV movie remake of “The Sound of Music” with Carrie Underwood playing Maria. I know that’s not Broadway but still an attempt nevertheless. Then it turns out that Constantine Maroulis had a stint with Rock of Ages too. There is life under American Idol indeed.
Scaled-Down Revivals
This is familiar territory knowing how many opera productions have gone minimalist much to the chagrin of the purist opera fan base. I’ve written about the minimalist approach to such productions here. Now as to whether this is an attempt to modernize productions or an effort to make do with what little budget is left to spend for, I am not at liberty to say. The true litmus test of artist usually comes in the form of a tightened purse. So if there was very little funding to rely on and you still ended up with a brilliant production, you are a major contributor to the economy. Congratulations.
Movie Stars on Stage
Good. Very good. I must say excellent. That’s very brave of them. Some celebrities nowadays think that simply because they earned their 15 minutes of fame, it won’t run out. If there is one medium available for them to prove that they have any acting chops to offer, that would be the stage. No cameras to worry about capturing your worst angle; no idiot boards (pardon the term but that’s what they are really called in showbiz) that you can read your lines from otherwise you would look too obvious. And most of all, no take 2 the moment you get on stage and show them what you’ve got, just in case you have any talent to begin with.
If this includes TV stars though, the runaway winner would be Neil Patrick Harris. Hello, Tony Award! It takes a special kind of outrageous talent to beat Ramin Karimloo for the Tony Award.
Looks like we’re on a roll today. Just remember to like our Facebook page and follow us on Twitter. Thanks for reading.
