Marissa P
Horror as a genre can be found in most mediums. Film and literature seem to be the most prevalent, but comics, television and radio all have their own stake in the horror genre. However, the stage seems to have fewer of these types of stories. I will be looking at a few notable musical theater productions that could arguably be classified as “horror.”
“Little Shop of Horrors”
Alan Menken’s 1982 off-Broadway hit was a send-up of science fiction and horror films, with the play’s central antagonist being a self-described “Mean Green Mother from Outer Space” (in a song exclusive to the film adaptation). Menken and lyricist Howard Ashman did not originate the idea of Little Shop, however. It was instead taken from a 1960 Roger Corman B-Film, that was within the public domain due to a clerical error during production. The musical is memorable as a satire of cheesy horror monster movies while remaining a technical marvel, with productions consistently utilizing intricate puppets to bring the play’s villainous plant to life.“Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”
Inspired by penny novels and schlocky horror fiction, Stephen Sondheim adapted a serialized short fiction tale from the Victorian era into his 1979 musical. The musical itself has seen great success, with a current run on Broadway with Josh Groban (??? Why ???) as the titular character and a U.S. tour in development. The production received a movie adaptation in 2007, directed by Tim Burton. The film starred Johnny Depp, Alan Rickman and Helena Bonham Carter.“The Rocky Horror Show”
Eclipsed by its more famous movie adaptation — “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” — this 1973 stage production was a love letter to all things camp. The film is cult-film royalty, with midnight screenings featuring audience participation still occurring nearly 50 years after the film’s release. With a story clearly inspired by “Frankenstein”, the show is actually more funny than chilling. However, I would be remiss to mention horror in musicals without mentioning such an iconic show.The collective works of StarKid Productions
In 2009, a handful of University of Michigan students wrote a musical theater parody of the “Harry Potter“ book series. This show — “A Very Potter Musical“ — was the beginning of the group known now as StarKid Productions. While the group remained in Michigan for a few more years, eventually the group moved to Chicago. There they produced seven original (as original as parody works can be, I guess) musical productions. In 2018, they made the move to Los Angeles with a new horror-comedy-musical — “The Guy Who Didn’t Like Musicals“. Looking at alien invasion and zombie films, the musical asks the question, “What if they made people sing instead of die?” The musical has spawned two off-shoot productions taking place in the same setting, 2019’s “Black Friday“ and 2023’s “Nerdy Prudes Must Die.““Carrie” The Musical
Did Stephen King intend for his first novel to be adapted into a Broadway musical when he wrote it? I sincerely doubt it because that would be very bizarre. That did not stop the creative team of Michael Gore and Dean Pitchford. The duo — winners of an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1980 — mounted a 1989 production. On Broadway, the show had 16 preview performances and five regular performances in total. When brought up, it is often remembered more for being one of the biggest Broadway flops than any of its other merits.These are just a handful of horror-inspired musicals I wanted to highlight. Obviously, there are far more, with one of Broadway’s greatest success stories being the gothic “Phantom of the Opera.“ However, I feel the five instances I listed are the true encapsulation of the horror genre on stage. From penny dreadfuls to B-movies, Broadway musicals are as good of an avenue to explore horror as any other.
