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American plays embellished
with songs were being offered in New York as early as Colonial
days. The most influential, popular, and enduring Broadway shows
all have toured the country and have performed in theatres large
and small everywhere. Elaborated scenic effects, colorful
costumes, and rows of bare limbed girls are some of the staples
of the Broadway Shows. People crowd New York City to see a real
Broadway char. There's nothing to beat the total experience
including the hustle-and-bustle on the streets, pre-theater
dinner, the opening curtain, the buzz at intermission and
possibly an after-show stroll down the Great White Way to a
post-dinner cocktail or dinner. Corporate sponsors dominate
Broadway, and often alliances are formed to stage musicals which
require an investment of $10 million or more. The producers from
time to time need to come up with a reasonable offer to defend
the integrity of Broadway and keep live music from disappearing
altogether. On Monday evening, Jan. 9, 2006 , Andrew Lloyd
Webber's award-winning musical The Phantom of the Opera will
become the longest-running show in Broadway history. The
performance will be number 7,486 -- surpassing the current
champion Cats, which held at 7,485 shows and was also written by
Webber. In addition to long runs in Broadway theatres, producers
often copy the production with a new cast and crew for the
Broadway national tour, which travels to theatres across the
country. Actors from movies and television are frequently cast
for the premieres of Broadway shows or are used to replace
actors leaving a cast. Many performers, however, are still
primarily "stage" actors, who spend more time on the stages of
New York .
Mamma Mia! A musical with a disco beat, Mamma
Mia! features the music of Swedish singing group ABBA. The
background is of a Greek island where 20 year old Sophie is due to
be married. Her mom, Donna (who happens to be a former singing
star) is there. But Sophie's father is not present because she is
not sure who he is. So, Sophie researches mom's diary and chooses
three former lovers as likely candidates and invites them to the
wedding, thinking she will figure it out when she sees them. Just
imagine Donna's non-plussed attitude after having been visited by
the old flames. With big girls, big hair, and even bigger laughs,
comes Hairspray, a splashy new musical based on the 1988 John
Waters film. It's 1962 and Baltimore teen Tracy Turnblad has only
one dream--to dance on the popular Corny Collins Show. The Lion
King adapted into an award-winning Broadway stage musical with the
same title, directed by Julie Taymor, featuring actors in animal
costumes as well as giant, hollow puppets. The stage show first
opened on July 31st, 1997 in Minneapolis at the Orpheum Theatre,
and was an instant and tremendous success, moving permanently to
the New Amsterdam Theater on Broadway in New York . Movin' Out is
a dance musical created by Twyla Tharp and based on the music of
Billy Joel that focuses on the life of high school sweethearts
Brenda and Eddie. |
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