Tuesday Top 10: Top 10 Musicals That Haven’t Been Made Into Movies Yet
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On the heels of the recent news that Guys and Dolls was getting a big screen remake with C-Tates and JGL and the Tony nominations, I decided to give this week’s top 10 a Broadway flavor. Movie musicals come and go in terms of public consciousness but given the success over the past few years, we might be entering a new age where musicals are being made regularly again. So I now present to you the top 10 Broadway musicals that haven’t made it to screen yet.
Just Missed: The Scottsboro Boys, American Idiot, Fela!, The Book of Mormon, The Wild Party, Urinetown, Sunday in the Park with George, bare: A Pop Opera, Passion
10. Avenue Q – You remember the year that both Wicked and Caroline or Change were up for the Tony and neither of them won? It’s cause this irreverent musical beat both of those heavyweights. With it’s hilarious lyrics and skewering of Sesame Street, this would be a musical for the millennials to enjoy and could spur the movement towards less serious musicals.
9. La Cage Aux Folles – Jerry Herman is perhaps most well known for that mammoth musical Hello Dolly, but La Cage Aux Folles is the better score and funnier musical. How it hasn’t made it to the big screen yet is craziness, especially given how drag culture has now become a real staple in the pop culture consciousness.
8. Next to Normal – Someday soon a white actress of a certain age is going to snatch this musical up and win an Oscar for t. The only musical on this list to win the Pulitzer Prize, Next to Normal is an amazingly rich look at a family dealing with mental illness. It’s rock score is sure to keep you awake but it’s the way it’s weaved into the narrative that will keep you yearning for more.
7. In the Heights – Probably my favorite musical on this list, it has a high energy score which mixes in Latin rhythms and rap music with classical Broadway flair. In the Heights also functions as a great examination of minorities, the American Dream and gentrification all while containing some of the best Act I and II endings you’ll ever see. Also, if you’re looking for a musical with big dance numbers, this is your best bet.
6. Caroline or Change – This musical has the best score of the modern age, written by Jeanine Tesori and Tony Kushner, and manages to both subvert and respect the places maids played in the Civil Rights era. The lead role of Caroline would be a get for any Black actress and if put in the right auteurist hands the visuals of the singing appliances and visions could really soar on screen.
5. Miss Saigon – Epic sweep, a wonderful score, and great parts for actresses, Miss Saigon would be a perfect musical to follow up on the success of Les Miz, and not just because they share the same composers. With it’s weaving back and forth through time, it’ll be a bit of a struggle to adapt but the central love story and the horrors of war would make it a compelling watch.
4. Ragtime – With the 2nd best score on this list, a million parts, and an epic sweep, this musical seems tailor made for production and awards. There are Oscar roles EVERYWHERE in this musical and the period trappings could make for a ton of technical nominations, so it’s definitely strange that it hasn’t made it to screen. But should Will Smith or Kate Hudson be looking for their next Oscar nomination….
3. Jersey Boys – Hollywood loves a biopic and jukebox musicals and with Jersey Boys they’d get both. People LOVE Franki Valli and this musical is tame enough to appeal to a wide audience but adult enough not to alienate the intelligence of those watching it. It’s had hit productions on Broadway, the West End and Las Vegas and would be a really fun time at the theater.
2. Spring Awakening – Given the proliferation of rock musicals that find their way to screen, why hasn’t this one been done yet? It mixes adolescent angst with incredibly dark themes and brilliant songs to weave a tale of kids struggling with their sexuality in the olden age. The tricky thing about this musical is that many of the songs are told from the point of view of the character’s minds so as long as the adaptation found a way to integrate those smoothly, this could be a big hit.
1. Wicked – What in the entire hell are the producers of Wicked waiting for? They’ve already waited to long to have Idina Menzel and Kristen Chenoweth reprise their roles, the general audience is being bombarded with revisionist fairy tales to the point of not caring, and the musical literally can’t get any more popular. There’s a lot of great stuff in this musical from the trip to dear old shiz to the subtle turns the plot takes to the wonderful score, as well as two fantastic lead characters. Get on this Hollywood!
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One thought on “Tuesday Top 10: Top 10 Musicals That Haven’t Been Made Into Movies Yet”
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I would LOVE to see 1,2,6,7, & 9 especially Wicked…I could soo do without Miss Saigon