Lists, Lists, Lists

I recently discovered that I can add sub-pages to my blog (just like a real live Web site!), but at first I was at a loss as to what I could put on those pages. Surely not the newsy stuff that comprises my regular blog posts: more perennial stuff of continuous appeal.

Then more recently I've came across The Drama 100: A Ranking of the Greatest Plays of All Time by one Daniel S. Burt. The book has actually rekindled my interest in regular old non-musical plays. (Please don't think less of me, dear reader: I'm still hopelessly devoted to musicals.) I've been buying up the scripts to some of the plays that Burt lists, and having a grand old time discovering great playwrights old and new.

But Burt's book got me thinking about creating a list of my own: The Musical 100: A Ranking of the Greatest Musicals of All Time. I love lists, both reading through them and creating my own. But I discovered that the effort was a bit more challenging than I initially had thought. There simply aren't as many musicals as there are plays, let alone great musicals.

This is a simple fact of history: straight dramas have been around for literally thousands of years, but the musical, as we currently know it, didn't really begin to evolve until 1866 with The Black Crook. And most of what came after that, at least for the next 50 years or so, was unadulterated crap. We didn't really start to get musicals of any quality until the early part of the 20th century, and most of the musicals that we pay any attention to these days were written after 1940.

So I was at a slight disadvantage in compiling my list, but soldiered bravely on. And in the process I even came up with a list of 100 runners-up, and was then inspired to compile a running list of musicals that just plain outright suck (IMOHO). I consider all of these lists to be living documents: I've already made numerous changes, and will continue to do so as the spirit moves me.

The pages are listed on the sidebar to the right, or you can click through the links above. Take a look and let me know what you think. I would imagine there will be some consternation and uproar, but dialog is good. Just don't expect it to be a democratic process. As I say rather tactlessly in the introduction to my 100-best list, the criteria are mine, and if you disagree you're free to create your own. Then you can send it to me, and I can tell you you're full of beans.

Whatever that means.

Comments

[Elisabeth]

I love the lists, they reminded me of a few musicals I haven't listened to in ages!

As expected a couple of musicals I enjoyed are considered "sucky" but that's what makes the world go around - different likes and dislikes.

Seeing Starlight Express in London as a 14 year old is one of my favourite memories of a theatrical experience. I admit the music, story and just about everything is pedestrian but the excitement and action for me was fantastic.

A funny aside, I went back to see it in London when I was 20 on student rush tickets. I was in the front row and one of the skaters fell off the stage into the protective nets and into my lap! After the show an usher approached me with a note and it was to meet the skater at the stage door. He apologised and took me for a pint and was gorgeous!

Maybe that's why I love it!

Keep up the great blog. I read you and Steve every morning and I'm almost inspired to start my own.

[chris caggiano]

Elisabeth,

Great story! I had fun seeing Starlight in London, but even then I knew it was crap. And the Broadway production did nothing to change my mind.

As for launching your own blog: Come on in, the water's fine! I know Steve was instrumental in getting Esther at Gratuitous Violins to launch her blog, and now she's an old pro. It's so much fun, and I've met lots of great people in the process.

Regards,

--Chris

[Esther]

Wow Chris, I'm impressed that you could name 200+ musicals, and that you actually took the time to provide a link to each and every one. What a terrific resource, and fun to read!

I also enjoyed your history of musical theatre: "The Black Crook" and then 50 years of crap!

I'm glad that some of my favorites, like "Wicked" and "Hairspray" are on your list, although they're congregated around the fifties. The ones near the top are movies I remember watching as a kid. I wonder if, in another few decades, "Hairspray" and "Wicked" will be the "Oklahoma" and "Music Man" of their time?

And I want to second what you told Elisabeth. I used to write lengthy e-mails to Steve talking about different shows, and he kept telling me I should start my own blog. I never felt like I knew that much or had enough to say, but I finally took the plunge and I'm so glad I did. It's been fun, it's given me an outlet for my writing, I've gotten hits from all over the world, and my fellow theatre bloggers have been incredibly supportive. I feel like I've made some new friends.

[Chris Caggiano]

Esther, you make an excellent point about the list being centered around the 40s and 50s. This is partly because there were simply more musicals then, because of the economics. More shows means more great shows. Quality is always the exception.

But I also found that in compiling the lists that I would err on the side of posterity: I was more likely to include shows that had stood the test of time. I took some chances in including shows like Adding Machine, Spelling Bee, Avenue Q, and Grey Gardens, but I tended to put them toward the latter half. Who knows: as time passes, they may move up, down, or off the list.

[Elisabeth]

Thanks Chris and Esther for the encouragement. I will think about it!