The Great Welsh Musical?
Spent an enjoyable Saturday evening at Bridgend Youth Theatre's very good production of Gypsy. I have to admit it didn't seem an obvious choice of show for a youth theatre to me - a very American musical featuring a middle aged lead role and a bunch of strippers (the last time I saw it was on Broadway with Tyne Daly in the lead role); but the key to a successful musical comedy production is often sheer discipline and hard work, and Brigend Youth Theatre showed they have the guts and dedication to make this most challenging of theatre forms work. I won't mention names except to say that all of the leads did themselves proud - giving spirited, generous performances.
Musicals have come up quite a lot in conversation recently. As a form, the musical has the great quality of feeling a lot more accessible than some other forms of theatre; and with Wales having such an extraordinary musical tradition, the search for the great Welsh musical seems an enticing prospect.
I don't think the UK often gets musicals right. We tend to forget the original name of the form 'musical comedy' and end up with musical pomposity in its place. A moment of true heart-wrenching emotion in a good musical is something the whole plot and score work hard to establish, to earn the right for (Gypsy is a good example - the reprise of 'Small World Isn't It' for instance). A lot of British musicals seem to me to be about over-done emotions and sets. But in recent years, we also seem to have fallen out of love with the development of the American musical. The two big hitting 'new musicals' of the past two decades - Rent in the 90s and Spring Awakening most recently - have both been huge hits on Broadway but struggled in the West End (despite fantastic young Welsh lead actors in the case of SA). Meanwhile 'tribute musicals' sell out. Has the musical become a nostalgia form for us?
I know there have been some popular new musicals and music-theatre pieces in Wales in recent years. Also theatres such as Theatre Royal Stratford East in London have been working hard to find new contemporary musicals, while venues such as the Watermill in Newbury have developed innnovative music-theatre staging. For me, probably the most succesful UK musical in recent years was the most quirky of all - Shock Headed Peter. Musicals aren't something you can rush at - they often take a while to get right - but it would be good for us to start exploring this tradition at National Theatre Wales. Ideas anyone?
Musicals have come up quite a lot in conversation recently. As a form, the musical has the great quality of feeling a lot more accessible than some other forms of theatre; and with Wales having such an extraordinary musical tradition, the search for the great Welsh musical seems an enticing prospect.
I don't think the UK often gets musicals right. We tend to forget the original name of the form 'musical comedy' and end up with musical pomposity in its place. A moment of true heart-wrenching emotion in a good musical is something the whole plot and score work hard to establish, to earn the right for (Gypsy is a good example - the reprise of 'Small World Isn't It' for instance). A lot of British musicals seem to me to be about over-done emotions and sets. But in recent years, we also seem to have fallen out of love with the development of the American musical. The two big hitting 'new musicals' of the past two decades - Rent in the 90s and Spring Awakening most recently - have both been huge hits on Broadway but struggled in the West End (despite fantastic young Welsh lead actors in the case of SA). Meanwhile 'tribute musicals' sell out. Has the musical become a nostalgia form for us?
I know there have been some popular new musicals and music-theatre pieces in Wales in recent years. Also theatres such as Theatre Royal Stratford East in London have been working hard to find new contemporary musicals, while venues such as the Watermill in Newbury have developed innnovative music-theatre staging. For me, probably the most succesful UK musical in recent years was the most quirky of all - Shock Headed Peter. Musicals aren't something you can rush at - they often take a while to get right - but it would be good for us to start exploring this tradition at National Theatre Wales. Ideas anyone?
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Comment by Peter Cox MBE on July 26, 2009 at 19:22
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Hi Guy, you wrote...
'I question whether we need a Great Welsh Musical but simply a great musical made in Wales.'
Well put. Maybe we could aspire to more than one?
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Comment by Guy O'Donnell on July 26, 2009 at 10:12
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Went to see Shock Headed Peter as well, a few years ago and it still one of the best things I've seen in recent years.
My partner Kath has just finished writing a musical comedy with Dyfan Jones as composer and Jeremi Cockram lyrics for Theatr Nan'Og called The Bankrupt Bride. Kath said its been an interesting process for them getting the balance of music, comedy, and story right and also your potential audience is somewhat unknown. Will your traditional musical lovers take a chance on a quirky new musical comedy and do your theatre loving regulars want a heart warming sing along? I question whether we need a Great Welsh Musical but simply a great musical made in Wales.
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Sounds like a really good evening John.
Isn't it often the case that some of the most powerful theatre around has a strong music element - whether a full blown musical or a play with music and song. I think the musical is definitely a form that NTW can be looking to explore but you're right about them taking time.
Over recent years Mal Pope has taken a strong lead in Wales with his musicals as you'll have picked up no doubt. I became involved on the script of Amazing Grace for its last tour and it was a great experience watching the audience as it toured Wales to great acclaim - including to full houses at the Millennium Centre. (In answer to the question mark in your Blog Title... in his review of the show on 17 November 2006 Michael Kelligan said it was 'a dynamic and vital show and most certainly does have the makings of the first great Welsh Musical'.)
The show worked really well on a number of levels for me.
It dealt with big themes of religious revivalism, the cult of the individual, capitalist exploitation in the coal mines and revolutionary politics set against ordinary lives of poverty, crisis and despair fed by hope, prayer and spiritual, as well as political, belief - all framed by the cynicism of tabloid journalism. At its heart there was also some fabulous singing of evocative melodies and lyrics that carried profound moments of emotional change in characters.
At times the show was very funny and at others stirring and almost tub-thumping in its political energy in a way that seemed to rouse the audience's passions from historic depths - almost pre -Thatcher & the 1984 miner's strike when trade union voices were strong and resistance was vocalised collectively. In the next breath the show evoked a deep sense of national loss almost - as if echoing through the broken windows of the many chapels across Wales that once burst at the seams but that now might house pound-shops or carpet stores. At other times the audience seemed to be swept away in a powerful fervour of the show's own making - as can happen during an international rugby match in the Millennium Stadium - simply the very fact that these were modern day Welsh actors performing at the highest level with material that allowed them to show their skills and at the same time touch chords deep within the audiences collective psyche. Peter Karrie's show stopping solo was a real Phil Bennett / Barry John moment!
I've had parallel experiences on the two large scale community plays that I've written in the mid Wales towns of Llanidloes and Rhayader. In both cases the cornerstones of collective emotional expression were the large scale songs that added enormous weight to the production and deeply affected the audience. They were designed to be an integral part of the storytelling and became some of the most memorable moments within the shows.
Music is also such a massive part of young people's lives these days that I think the musical can be a fantastic way in for young people to live performance - and with the development of technology and interactive experiences in other formats such as ARG's there's a whole new model of musical waiting to be explored, invented and created... and why not by composers, writers, singers, actors, choreographers, companies etc working in Wales.
I don't know if you've seen the West End musical The Jersey Boys? I was never a fan of the Four Seasons music but there is a lot to be said for this show that transcends the concept of 'tribute musical'. The Book for a start is fantastically well written but the use of screen technology really enhances the audience experience - allowing us to switch between live action and archived material in a seamless and eloquent way.
You'll have gathered I'm a big fan of musicals but I'm definitely interested in pushing the form. If you wanted to pull a few people together at some stage to talk through the notion of NTW and Musicals I'd be keen to contribute.
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