The 1980’s are still proving to be a field day for west end potentials. From Footloose to Fame and Dirty Dancing. The 90s are now catching up and we’ve already seen worldwide success for The Lion King and Beauty and the Beast. So where’s the next movie turned musical going to come from?
Here are five films from the 90s which I think would make great musicals!
1) The Wedding Singer
If you’ve seen this comedy flick from 1998, you’ll be raising an eyebrow and telling me that it’s full of 80s music. True enough, and not a bad thing, because I’m also a huge fan of that decade too. However, I honestly believe that the Wedding Singer, (Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore) is screaming out to be transformed into an all singing foot tapping musical.
In case you’ve forgotten the story line; Robbie Hart (Sandler) is singing the hits of the 1980s at weddings and other celebrations. He gets dumped at the altar, meets Julia (Barrymore), who is engaged to the wrong guy, and he falls in love with her.
The Wedding Singer was a brilliant musical comedy and featured an impressive soundtrack, including hits from Spandau Ballet, Culture Club, Dead or Alive, Billy Idol and the Thomson Twins. Think I’d pay to see this one!
2) Pretty Woman
This romantic comedy drama from right at the start of the decade is now a true classic – and requires no explanation. It made Julia Roberts a star and the soundtrack is full of power hits including ‘It Must Have Been Love’, ‘Show Me Heaven’.
The storyline was powerful, touching and memorable. I’ve heard rumours of a possible sequel too. For me this is the most likely 90s movie to be a transferred onto the West End. Although you wouldn’t get any of he original cast to reprise their roles for the stage version, Pretty Woman: The Musical would be a smash hit for sure!
3) Aladdin
It’s been a staple of the pantomime season for years, has been a hit on Broadway and a Disney movie in the 90s too. Having said that , I’m still including it in my top five, because the story has so much charm and magic which makes it ideal to be shown on stage beyond the panto. Sure, we’ve all seen Aladdin at some point, so maybe we’re bored of it now.
I hear that the current musical spectacular is closing on Broadway in August to make way for a stage version of Toy Story (?!) Theatre land is thriving right now and a new version of Aladdin wouldn’t do it any harm.
4) Austin Powers
Perhaps this is the least likely in my list to be transformed from movie to musical. Mike Myers creation ‘the international man of mystery’ grooved his way onto the silver screen in 1997, with an incredibly funny and clever parody of James Bond. It wasn’t a favourite of the critics at the time, but Austin Powers has been a cult hit with audiences ever since.
If you include a few more 60s and 70s hits, mix in some classic moments from the original movie and condense the storyline down, this might just work. I can just picture the cast breaking out into song and dance at random moments with someone shouting ‘groovy baby’, and then shaking their tail feathers to some Chubby Checker.
5) Clueless
You can really smell the 90s in this classic teen movie from 1995. It captured the student culture and the fashions perfectly. Jane Austin’s novel ‘Emma’ is given a new twist in this comedy which starred Alicia Silverstone and the now late Brittany Murphy. Clueless also enjoyed a spin off TV show, a few books and has to be the next musical for sure.
Clueless is now an iconic film and a convincing argument to be written for the stage. It also features a rather diverse soundtrack with songs from Radiohead, Supergrass and the Counting Crows.
So which 90s films or bands do you think would make a brilliant musical?
Next week…part two of ‘Eat My 90s DVDs’. The ‘must own’ collection.
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