Why Don't They Sing Anymore?

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Robots the Movie

Just got back from seeingRobots, the DreamWorksanimated movie about an all-robot world.

Nice movie, lots of funny bits, and Robin Williams was his usual manic self as Fender. But it was missing something. It was a typical movie with background music, but no singing.

I really miss the animated musicals!

I know I'm dating myself with The Little Mermaid, Beauty and The Beast, and The Lion King, but I loved those films.

Robots had a ton of great moments that would have "sung" nicely. Maybe I'm just a musical nut, but I think musicalizing animated features helps you feel real emotion for these animated characters that don't look (or sound) real. Yes, I know that there are lots of examples where animation succeeds with just great background music without being a musical (case in point: Toy Story and Toy Story 2, butRandy Newman really nailed the emotional moments...) Even then, a teensy weensy part of me wishes that Woody would break out into song.

To tell you the truth, I find most of the recent animated films a bit forgettable without the songs. Shrekand Shrek 2 gave us a bit of it at the end (the donkey singing I'm a Believer or Puss In Boots sing La Vie Da Loca), but I want more! The last movie I saw was SpongeBob SquarePants (I know, I have to get out more) and Patrick and SpongeBob did sing a couple of times as part of the story, and those are the scenes the kids still talk about. Well, that, and "...who is David Hasselhoff?"

Is it too much to ask for a singing Crayfish telling me what he wants in life?

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Blogger bio

My name is Suzy Conn and I am a musical theatre composer, lyricist, and librettist. I make may home in Seattle (actually, Mercer Island to be specific) and I am a graduate of the Theatre Building Chicago, Musical Theatre Writers' Workshop.

I am in the writing and workshop process with a number of different musicals, including:

PLANE CRAZY: A Broadway-style musical about feminism set against the backdrop of glamour and innocent sex appeal of the swinging '60s Jet Age, where women learn to "Pilot Your Own Destiny™" (productions in New York, Toronto, Oklahoma City).

Beatrix Potter's THE TALE OF PIGLING BLAND (with Mitchell Kitz): A 45-minute children's musical based on the classic Beatrix Potter story (productions in Chicago and Toronto).

THE MERCER GIRLS (for The 5th Avenue Theatre's AMT program)

DAISY THE FIRECOW and LARRY GETS LOST IN SEATTLE (part of Northwest Bookshelf 2 for The 5th Avenue Theatre's AMT program)

FRANKENBOOGER (with Mitchell Kitz): The new tween musical that tells the cautionary tale of nose picking gone terribly, terribly wrong. Our heroine learns to "Pick Your Friends, Not Your Nose™".

Prior to focusing exclusively on musical theatre, I spent 10 years writing in Toronto and Nashville where I co-wrote or wrote hundreds of country and pop songs and commercial jingles. As a result, I have numerous U.S., international, and Canadian cuts, and several of my songs hit #1 on the international country charts. I have also won a number of songwriting awards, including the prestigious SOCAN Advanced Writer's Workshop Award.

I am a proud member of the Association of Canadian Librettists, Composers, and Lyricists (ACLCL), SOCAN, ACTRA, Toronto Musician's Association (Local 149, A.F. of M.), Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI), Songwriters Guild of America (SGA), Dramatist's Guild of America, and the Songwriters Association of Canada (SAC).

Thanks for listening!

Suzy's Favorite Sites

Maximum Broadway Radio
This is a FANTASTIC Broadway site that broadcasts Live 365.com Internet Radio with 24/7 showtunes! It's a BROADWAY RADIO STATION! I've got it running on my laptop now, and forever. Also includes links to a library of songs, theaters across America and a News section, which includes yours truly...

Internet Broadway Database
IBDB provides a comprehensive database of shows produced on Broadway, including all "title page" information about each production. IBDB also offers historical information about theatres and various statistics and fun facts related to Broadway.

42nd Street Moon Blog
A GREAT musical theater blog, with a Blogway Baby-style fanatical devotion to Broadway. It's published by a theater company focused on "Classic Broadway in Concert", based in San Francisco. I wish I'd known about these guys when I lived in Palo Alto!

Mermaniac
Mermanic, "A Show Tunes Weblog", has an excellent blogroll which has been divided into the signs of the zodiac...Blogway Baby is under the sign of Cancer.

Jorge's Place
This seems like the ultimate Broadway fan site. Nicely designed too!

Yahoo! Entertainment
A fantastic movie musical link database: All the big stars are in here.

Playbill.com
The classic, the original, the only. Playbill: Following theater since there was theater...

Talkin' Broadway
Nice gossip site on Broadway. Interface is weird and difficult to use, but solid content.

Backstage Magazine
The actor's resource to upcoming audtions and casting sessions across the US of A.

Variety Magazine
The grandpappy of theater...check out the "Legit" section.

Broadway.com
The definitive resource on Broadway. Get your tickets, your hotels, and your Broadway plans at Broadway.com

Myrna's Page
My daughter's home page. Isn't she cute?

BoingBoing
The world's greatest blog, EVAR.

Broadwayworld.com
A great resource for Broadway and Off-Broadway reviews.

New York Musical Theatre Festival
The one, the only, New York Musical Theatre Festival: The world's premier musical theater event.

Northern River Arts and Entertainment
A great and comprehensive archive of Canadian musical theater history.

Musical Theater Giants

Richard Adler (b. 1923) Lyricist Richard Adler is best recalled as part of the team of composer Jerold Ross and Adler. Best known for The Pajama Game and Damn Yankees. Adler was unable to reproduce these successes after the death of Ross in 1955.

Lionel Bart (b. 1930 / d. 1999) Composer/Lyricist Lionel Bart parlayed a massively successful '50s pop-song writing career into musical theater. He succeeded with Oliver! and Blitz!, and was personally and financially ruined by the flop Twang!.

Irving Berlin (b. 1888 / d. 1989)

Leslie Bricusse (b. 1931)

Cy Coleman (b. 1929 / d. 2004)

Betty Comden

Fred Ebb (b. 1933 / d. 2004)

Adolph Green (b. 1914 / d. 2002)

Jerry Herman (b. 1933)

John Kander (b. 1927)

Alan Jay Lerner (b. 1918 / d. 1986)

Frank Loesser (b. 1910 / d. 1969)

Frederick Loewe (b. 1901 / d. 1988)

Anthony Newley (b. 1931 / d. 1999)

Cole Porter (b. 1891 / d. 1964)

Gerry Ross (b. 1926 / d. 1955)

Arthur Schwartz (b. 1900 / d. 1984)

Stephen Schwartz (b. 1948)

Stephen Sondheim (b. 1930)

Charles Strouse (b. 1928)

Association Sites

Association of Canadian Librettists, Composers, and Lyricists (ACLCL)

SOCAN

ACTRA

Toronto Musician's Association (Local 149, A.F. of M.)

Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI)

Songwriters Guild of America (SGA)

Dramatist's Guild of America

Songwriters Association of Canada (SAC)

Professional Association of Canadian Theatres

From Hollywood to Broadway

They say it's the hot trend in musicals today -- adapting a popular movie to the stage -- but while The Producers (2001), adapted from The Producers (1968) and Hairspray (2002), adapted from Hairspray (1988) grab all the attention, the trend has actually been around for a while. Here's a sampling of a list that seems to grow every day.

David Merrick, the legendary impressario, actually loved to adapt film material and he became famous with some of these productions:

42nd Street (1933) became 42nd Street (1980)

Marcel Pagnol's Marseilles Trilogy (1929) became Fanny: A New Musical (1954)

The Apartment (1960) became Promises, Promises (1968)

Some Like It Hot (1959) became Sugar (1972)

Destry Rides Again (1939) became Destry Rides Again (1959)

State Fair (1945) became State Fair (1996)

And here's a bunch more non-Merrick examples:

Mary Poppins (1964) became Mary Poppins (2004)

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968) became Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (2002)

Meet Me In St. Louis (1945) became Meet Me In St. Louis (1989)

Singin' in the Rain (1952) became Singin' In The Rain (1996)

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954) became Seven Brides For Seven Brothers (1985)

The Wizard of Oz (1939) became The Wizard of Oz (1988)

High Society (1956) became High Society (1998)

Swing Time (1936) became Never Gonna Dance (2003)

Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967) became Thoroughly Modern Millie (2002) (though little of the original score was used)

Beauty and the Beast (1991, Animated) became Beauty and the Beast (1994)

The Lion King (1994, Animated) became The Lion King (1997)

All About Eve (1950) became Applause (1970)

Woman of the Year (1942) became Woman Of The Year (1981)

Nights of Cabiria (1957) became Sweet Charity: A New Musical Comedy (1966)

Smiles Of A Summer Night (1957) became A Little Night Music (1973)

Sunset Boulevard (1950) became Sunset Boulevard (1994)

It (1927) became The It Girl (2001)

8 1/2 (1963) became Nine (1982)

Sweet Smell of Success (1957) became Sweet Smell of Success (2002)

The Captain's Paradise (1953) became Oh Captain (1958)

The Night of the Hunter (1955) became The Night Of The Hunter (1998 Concept Cast) (also a literary source but best known as a film)

Billy Elliot (2000) became Billy Elliot: The Musical on the West End (2005)

And continuing into the future, stay tuned for White Christmas, based on the 1954 movie of the same name.

Reader favorite posts

Here are some of Blogway Baby's favorite posts, as voted by Blogway Baby readers:

+ The Lyrics to Sarah Jessica Parker's GAP Ad, "I Enjoy Being A Girl"

+ Rosie O'Donnell's Haiku Blog

Nudie Musical Themes
+ More Nudie Musical Goodness
+ I Always Wondered About That Title
+ Playboy: The Musical
+ G-Spot: Canadian Sex in the City based in L.A.
+ The Pajama-less Game
+ It's Naked Week at Blogway Baby!
+ Bring Back Oh! Calcutta!

The "Ultimate Entertainment Niche" Series
+ Part II
+ Part I

The SF :: Broadway Connection
+ Part IV: Reader Contributions
+ Part III: How Could I Have Missed This One?
+ Part II
+ The SF :: Broadway Connection
+ SF / Musical Theater Mash-up
+ A Long Time Ago, In A Theater Far, Far Away

Flops I Missed
+ Part II: Nick & Nora
+ Part I: Carrie

The "Great Tortured Stephen Sondheim" Series
+ "Songs I Wish I'd Never Written"
+ Wall-to-wall Stephen Sondheim
+ Part III
+ Part II
+ Part I

Top Ten Movie Musicals

10: An American in Paris / Gigi because France in the '50s is simply irresistible;

9: There's No Business Like Show Business because of Ethel Merman...'nuff said?;

8: West Side Story, because even though they dubbed Natalie Wood they retained the energy of the original staging;

7: Guys and Dolls, and not everyone likes this one because of Brando's singing, but I just love the sets, the times, and Frank is simply perfect;

6: Flying Down to Rio / Gay Divorcee / Roberta / Top Hat / Follow the Fleet and Swing Time / Shall We Dance / Carefree / The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle / The Barkleys of Broadway because this list wouldn't be complete without Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, who kept me company afternoons that I used to skip out of school to watch these musicals on TV;

5: Oliver! because it had a huge impact on me as a child: It was the first time that I'd seen someone get killed in a musical. And each time I see it, I still think there's a chance she'll get away;

4: Funny Girl because of two words: Barbra Streisand;

3: Jesus Christ Superstar because of Norman Jewison's incredibly inventive filmography, the energy, the '70s...the closest thing I've ever had to a religious experience;

2: It's a tie between White Christmas because of "Sisters": One of the most important songs in my life and Holiday Inn because despite the cringe-worthy blackface routines and racist stereotyping, it has one of the best dance numbers ever with Fred Astaire and a pocketful of firecrackers;

...and most importantly...

1: Singin' in the Rain because of Donald O'Connor's "Make 'em Laugh" (even though it was blatantly ripped off of Cole Porter's "Be A Clown") and "Good Morning", our daily refrain in the Conn household.