Musicals dominate the holiday season
Catchy carols have long been a part of the holiday season, but this December you might find yourself humming a Broadway tune instead.
For the past decade, it seems as though year-end entertainment has been taken over by movie adaptations of classic musicals. Some, such as 鈥�The Producers鈥� (2005) and 鈥淣ine鈥� (2009), haven鈥檛 done well at the box office or with critics, but there have been enough blockbusters, such as 鈥�Dreamgirls鈥� (2006) and 鈥�Les Mis茅rables鈥� (2012), that Hollywood keeps trying. This December both a remake of 鈥淎nnie鈥� and a film adaptation of the Stephen Sondheim musical 鈥淚nto the Woods鈥� are highly anticipated at theaters.
And it鈥檚 not just happening on the silver screen. Last year NBC undertook the challenge of 鈥�The Sound of Music Live!,鈥� which featured country star Carrie Underwood in the role of Maria von Trapp. Despite the comparisons to the much-loved 1965 movie classic, the live broadcast was a smash. So NBC tried again this year with 鈥�Peter Pan Live!鈥� starring Allison Williams (of HBO鈥檚 鈥淕irls鈥�) and Christopher Walken on Dec. 4. The network has already announced plans are under way for a live broadcast of 鈥淭he Music Man.鈥� While not officially on the holiday schedule for 2015, it seems likely NBC will continue to build on the success of its previous year-end programming.聽
Suffolk University theater department chair and Boston Music Theatre Project founding director Marilyn Plotkins says the shows鈥� familiar stories are a factor in holiday programming. 鈥淭hese musicals are like comfort food,鈥� Ms. Plotkins says.
In addition, while some musicals that have come to theaters are more cynical with darker themes, the positive messages of stories like 鈥淎nnie鈥� fit well with the holiday season focus of looking at the good in the world.
鈥淭hey draw on this very deep need to feel hopeful,鈥� Plotkins says.
