Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day, the day of Love. When we of think of love on that day, we think of romance. As known in musicals, some of them are love stories (as in romance). So, what are some of my favorite love stories?
One of the most common themes in music theatre is ROMANCE. That is one of my favorite things about the world of musicals. Romance creates some of the most beautiful and/or heartbreaking songs. So, what are some of those new couples I fell in love with?
They are from Anastasia- I wanted to see this musical after falling in love with five songs. Their love song, “In a Crowd of Thousands”, is one of my favorites in the musical. At first, it can be difficult to like Dmitry, but you slowly learn to love him (after all, he really grows). Dmitry and Anya are incredible characters.
Between all of my new couples, they are the only tragic one. Orpheus and Eurydice are based on a Greek Myth. Hadestown was one that fascinated me due to my love for Greek Mythology. I love their relationship- Orpheus is a character who truly loved Eurydice (You can tell especially from “Wait for Me” to the end). Tragic couples are tricky- you really want them to stay together despite knowing their fate
These two already were in love by the time “Something Rotten” started. That was because Nick and Bea were already married. Bea was incredibly supportive of Nick. She wanted to do anything to help him, as proven through “Right Hand Man”.
Yes, this was a couple that fell in “love at first sight”, but only that actually worked. That is because they bonded over something. Both of these characters love poetry and Shakespeare. That is why that worked- having something in common. They have a beautiful love song, “I Love the Way”
It is that time of year again. Now I will talk about the musicals I saw this year. This year consisted of three musicals——one of which I already fell in love with, and the other two are still fresh. So, what are those three musicals?
Originally postponed in 2020, I am glad I was able to see Frozen this year. I already fell in love with this musical. I already loved the characters of Elsa, Anna, Kristoff, and Olaf. The only thing that was new to me were the added songs- my main disappointment came from the cut of “True Love”, a heartbreaking song meant for Anna. Before seeing the stage show, I could only guess what was happening during the new songs.
In my production, I am so glad I ended up with Caroline Bowman as Elsa. I also got the Pabbie I wanted- knowing he was a Charlotte native, I knew it would be special getting him. The two girls playing Young Elsa and Young Anna were incredible. This production of Frozen allowed the two sisters to have more bonding time- not just when they were children, but when they were older as well. Due to the new songs, the characters were able to develop further.
https://megsmagicalmusings.wordpress.com/2022/06/24/for-the-first-time-in-forever/
Just like Frozen, Anastasia also got postponed in 2020—-so it was interesting how I got to see BOTH of them the same year. I wanted to see this musical due to already loving five of its songs. I was purposely not listening to the others- to be surprised. Anastasia proved to be a beautiful musical. Veronica Stern was an incredible Anya and so was Willem Butler as Dmitry.
https://megsmagicalmusings.wordpress.com/2022/10/12/journey-to-the-past/
I have been wanting to this musical since it swept the Tonys in 2019. Not only do I love musicals, but Greek Mythology as well. So Hadestown combines two things I love. Just like Anastasia, I was trying not to listen to many of the songs. I already knew it was sung-through, narrated by Hermes, and actually read the original myth of Orpheus and Eurydice.
Crazy how a minimal set can do so much. The set of Hadestown is basically this Jazz cafe, but is capable of a number of things. After all, part of its scenes are in a railway town and others are in Hadestown. I formed an emotional connection between Orpheus and Eurydice- I wanted their relationship to work despite knowing the truth. The lighting was incredible- particularly in the song, “Wait For Me”. After seeing the musical, I could understand why it swept the Tonys.
https://megsmagicalmusings.wordpress.com/2022/11/10/wait-for-me-hadestown-reivew/
As musical theatre fanatics, we want to own the soundtracks to our favorite musicals. When it comes to many musical soundtracks, it is very easy to look up a musical song and just listen to it. But when it comes to Hadestown, things feel a little bit different. So, what is the difference with the soundtrack of Hadestown?
Hadestown is the kind of show where you don’t want to just look up one song and be done. When it comes to listening to the songs, you want to listen to the entire soundtrack. That is the nature of the show, it feels like. That isn’t because it is sung-through, but most likely because it is based off of Greek Mythology. Plus, listening to the entire soundtrack makes the songs flow better, and some songs fall naturally into the next. That wouldn’t make sense unless you have either seen the musical or gotten the soundtrack.
When it comes to musicals, they usually are known for something. I usually am talking about a certain prop- sometimes it is small or big. There are two musicals known for the exact same thing, which is a red rose. So what two musicals am I talking about (those are actually two musicals I love)
This is the MOST recent musical that entered my life. I saw the rose on playbills, during “Wait for Me”, and it seemed to be a major part of this tragic love story. But, what I wasn’t understanding why it was an important part of Hadestown. I had to see the musical first to figure that one out.
The rose actually seemed to represent both love stories in Hadestown- that of Orpheus and Eurydice and of Persephone and Hades. If you think of, roses are a symbol of romance and same with the color of red. Plus, the rose was showing up constantly in the musical.
Of course, this made sense- the rose symbolism was introduced in the prologue. It also represented love, but the Beast had to find love before the last petal fell. It did feel hopeless for a long time, but good thing Belle eventually entered his life. The musical enters on their romance- the magical and enchanting nature of the song, “Beauty and the Beast”
there is beauty in the little things
A random guy called Will who needs somewhere to post his long, rambling opinions about various topics
Meg's Magical Musings 