You Can't Stop The Beat: Why It's Okay That Broadway is Changing

A couple days ago, I saw that Ken Davenport (Broadway Producer of KINKY BOOTS and others) posted this article (Basically, Clive Davis gives reasoning why he's producing a MY FAIR LADY revival). Within that article, Ken Davenport states that he feels that Clive doesn't know what he is saying (that no great songs have been created since the Oklahoma days).

I understand that everyone's opinion belongs to them, but I agree. Broadway, like any other art, has changed to fit the new generations. If you listen to music from Cole Porter's Anything Goes and then listen to music from Stephen Sondiem's Into the Woods, they sound different, regardless that the songs were made 50 years apart. The same thing goes if you listen to music from Sound of Music to Sister Act, or Little Mermaid to Frozen. Why? The audience is changing.

When RENT came about, it was different than every musical out there. I am willing to say that it was one of the first musicals that shaped Broadway to what it is today.
Why?
Jonathan Larson must have known that by bringing LA BOHEME to Broadway would have sucked: This is the time of rock and roll, pop music, belty sounds. No one would go see an operatic piece of theater. It would be boring.
He had to update it.

And it worked.

You walk down Broadway and you see various types of musicals (Lion King- Disney/ African influence, Kinky Boots- Rock, Phantom- classical w/ operatic influence, Hedwig and the Angry Itch- Rock, Cinderella- classic Rodgers and Hammerstien, Once- Folk sound, etc). If you want to know why shows like these work, all you need to do is listen to today's music:
Mumford and Sons- Folk sound in some songs
One Direction- Pop
Fun. - Rock/ Pop

So why can't theater change if music is changing? I'm sure that we would have more Oklahoma style shows if we heard classical music on the radio.

So I now bring you to musicals of today:
There are a lot more musicals created this year and that means more nominees for the Tony Awards.
One of the musicals that has had the MOST mixed reviews was IF/THEN.

Members of the cast of IF/THEN

IF/THEN follows the story of Elizabeth (Idina Menzel), and her life if she decides to go by Beth or Liz (I think those are the two). The musical has been called hard to follow (I wouldn't know, I have yet to see it). From what I heard of the music, it is great! Idina Menzel is great, and I don't know why it is getting so many mixed reviews. Then I read an article that compared it to another great show: Company

DVD of the Broadway Revival of Company (Which the NPT's Kristin Huffman played Sarah in)

Both shows follow the lives of one person and their friends. But that is where the similarities kind of end. But this article basically said to not give up on the musical IF/THEN, because Company (which was different for its time) was called the same thing: confusing to follow.
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So, what point am I trying to make?

Theater is an art. Art changes depending on the audience. That is apparent in every style: dance, song, theater, paintings, etc. So it isn't new that theater is changing.

Also, good luck to all those on Broadway! Tony Nominations get announced on Tuesday! Can't wait!

-Nathan Clift
16 years old
VP of the NPT Youth Board.

PS. This is the 50th Blog Post for BREAKALEG.

Painting Broadway Blue

This past weekend I had the privilege of seeing Blue Man Group in New York City at the Astor Place Theatre. My first impression was one of curiosity because of the size of the theatre on Lafayette Street. The auditorium seemed to barely fit 800 people. When I took my seat in the second row of the mezzanine, I realized that what the theatre was was not small, but intimate. Boy, was I in for such a treat.

The show began with a series of shout outs to people in the audience. We all joined in an ill-tuned speaking of “Happy Birthday” to someone named Anne, a congratulations to a Bronze-medal Olympic diver and a friendly welcome to an average man named Richard who was so conveniently sitting in the seat in front of me. I enjoyed the back of your head, Richard.

Once the house lights were lowered, excitement bubbled up inside me. A projection of a silhouetted blue man playing drums was the first glimpse of the show we got. Eventually, the projection revealed two more silhouettes and we were head first into the performance.

As the show progressed, many topics of today were made into sketches: the ever-expanding size of iPhones and tablets, the plumbing under our houses and the now technologically-obsessed youth.

My favorite aspect of the show is that it calls for audience participation. Rather than sitting through a six-hour, three-intermission opera at the Met, Blue Man Group actually makes the audience the focal point of a good majority of the show by climbing over their heads, feeding them Twinkies and painting with them. The audience is so much a part of the show that during curtain call, where normally the performers gesture towards the lighting booth, band and any other stagehand in the general area, the three blue men gestured towards the audience, not as thanks, but as recognition.

Speaking of lighting and music, both were jaw-droppers. The band was so precise and engaging that sometimes I found myself staring at the red-glow of drumsticks rather than the shenanigans onstage. The lighting was fabulous, but is not for everyone. Strobe lights and spotlights danced around the tiny theatre, making you feel like you were in disco ball.

Though these two aspects of the show were flashy and enticing, you never lost interest in the main act. The blue men that danced around stage were expressionless in the face, but were so incredible in moving their eyes and body that they captivated every corner of the auditorium and filled it with laughter.

There was never a moment that I found dull nor childish, even though the toddler in the row behind me laughed his face off the whole time. Blue Man Group is tasteful and fun for the whole family.

If ever in a situation where you can see the Blue Man Group, I highly recommend it. They have numerous locations including NYC, Boston, Los Angeles and several cruise lines. This is a show for people of all ages, shapes, sizes and colors (especially the blue-skinned)!



Katherine Griffin
NPT Youth Board Member
Trumbull High School '16