Why is musical theatre hated so much?
The other day, I was in a lesson at college listening to the 'Phantom of the opera' soundtrack. When I said this to someone in the class, they said 'Any form of musical theatre is just gay'. First off - gay is not an insult. Second - why? Why does musical theatre get so much hatred? Admittedly singing all the way through is not everyones cup of tea, but there are strong themes in every musical I can think of that could mean something to everyone.
Phantom of the opera:
If you listen to the lyrics of the songs, it's not just a bunch of notes being sung out loud to bore people. 'The music of the night' is where the Phantom expresses just how much he loves Christine - 'You alone can make my song take flight'.
Even if you take the songs away and replace them with dialogue - the show is still really sinister - The owners of the theatre didn't do what 'some ghost' told them to, so as a threat, he hangs a stagehand MID SHOW. If that's not dramatic enough for you, I don't know what will be.
Les Miserables:
This is a musical everyone knows but not many people understand. It's very confusing but has so many themes - the main one being the class/rich & poor divide. After one man - Jean Valjean - decides he is not going to let his criminal record define him, he does everything he can to help those who are poor. Including adopting a child of a woman who was sacked from his factory. She couldn't afford to look after either her or her child, so when she dies, he takes the young girl on as his own.
Later in the show, there is a revolution happening to overthrow the government in France and make everyone equal. During this, some of the young men in the revolution sing a song called 'Drink with me'. If you listen to the lyrics, you can understand how they really feel about the revolution they're in. "Drink with me....To days gone by, can it be you fear to die? Will the world remember you when you fall? Could it be your death means nothing at all? Is your life just one more lie?" Pretty depressing stuff.
Billy Elliot:
This is the show that annoys me the most when people say it's awful. It really isn't that hard to understand - it's the simplest stage show I can think of which still manages to provide so much emotion. An 11 year old boy in the 1980's who wants to dance professionally - ballet that is - but has to do it in secret because his dad thinks it is something which only girls or gay boys do. When he takes lessons in secret, his teacher sees his talent and wants him to go to a dance school. Dad says no, sees son dance and changes his mind. SIMPLE.
The main song of the show is 'Electricity' sung by the young boy - it is him describing how it feels when he dances. The way he sings it always makes me shiver - "Like a fire deep inside, something bursting me wide open impossible to hide. And suddenly i'm flying, flying like a bird, like electricity, electricity. Sparks inside of me and I'm free, I'm free." If something can make you feel that good, you should just do it no matter what anyone thinks. And he does.
I hope that if you don't love musical theatre as much as me now, you at least understand it and can see why it can make people cry in the way it does. What are your thoughts on musicals? Big fan or maybe not? Let me know in the comments!
Phantom of the opera:
If you listen to the lyrics of the songs, it's not just a bunch of notes being sung out loud to bore people. 'The music of the night' is where the Phantom expresses just how much he loves Christine - 'You alone can make my song take flight'.
Even if you take the songs away and replace them with dialogue - the show is still really sinister - The owners of the theatre didn't do what 'some ghost' told them to, so as a threat, he hangs a stagehand MID SHOW. If that's not dramatic enough for you, I don't know what will be.
Les Miserables:
This is a musical everyone knows but not many people understand. It's very confusing but has so many themes - the main one being the class/rich & poor divide. After one man - Jean Valjean - decides he is not going to let his criminal record define him, he does everything he can to help those who are poor. Including adopting a child of a woman who was sacked from his factory. She couldn't afford to look after either her or her child, so when she dies, he takes the young girl on as his own.
Later in the show, there is a revolution happening to overthrow the government in France and make everyone equal. During this, some of the young men in the revolution sing a song called 'Drink with me'. If you listen to the lyrics, you can understand how they really feel about the revolution they're in. "Drink with me....To days gone by, can it be you fear to die? Will the world remember you when you fall? Could it be your death means nothing at all? Is your life just one more lie?" Pretty depressing stuff.
Billy Elliot:
This is the show that annoys me the most when people say it's awful. It really isn't that hard to understand - it's the simplest stage show I can think of which still manages to provide so much emotion. An 11 year old boy in the 1980's who wants to dance professionally - ballet that is - but has to do it in secret because his dad thinks it is something which only girls or gay boys do. When he takes lessons in secret, his teacher sees his talent and wants him to go to a dance school. Dad says no, sees son dance and changes his mind. SIMPLE.
The main song of the show is 'Electricity' sung by the young boy - it is him describing how it feels when he dances. The way he sings it always makes me shiver - "Like a fire deep inside, something bursting me wide open impossible to hide. And suddenly i'm flying, flying like a bird, like electricity, electricity. Sparks inside of me and I'm free, I'm free." If something can make you feel that good, you should just do it no matter what anyone thinks. And he does.
I hope that if you don't love musical theatre as much as me now, you at least understand it and can see why it can make people cry in the way it does. What are your thoughts on musicals? Big fan or maybe not? Let me know in the comments!
Comments
Post a Comment