# Puny humans, help me understand and appreciate musical theatre! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 24, 2006, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puny-humans-help-me-understand-and-appreciate-musical-theatre/381642 "2006-11-24T14:52:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2006, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puny-humans-help-me-understand-and-appreciate-musical-theatre/381642/41 "2006-11-25T16:36:33Z")
[QUOTE=dangermom] If the movie didn’t get good reviews, then why on earth was _The Pirate Movie_ made? [/QUOTE] _TPM_ (1982) came out the year before _Penzance_ (1983) did. ---
**Author:** ![dangermom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@dangermom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangermom)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2006, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puny-humans-help-me-understand-and-appreciate-musical-theatre/381642/42 "2006-11-25T18:06:37Z")
Really? What a strange world we live in. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2006, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puny-humans-help-me-understand-and-appreciate-musical-theatre/381642/43 "2006-11-25T23:01:58Z")
I watched **Oliver!** again this weekend. Some of the best movie musical huge production numbers are in that film. ---
**Author:** ![mack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mack)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2006, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puny-humans-help-me-understand-and-appreciate-musical-theatre/381642/44 "2006-11-25T23:49:08Z")
**Porgy & Bess** is a good one if you can find it. Also, **Carmen Jones**. \*\* A Chorus Line\*\* is being revived on stage. That was pretty much my favorite when I was young. I also liked **Godspell** and **Jesus Christ Superstar**. ---
**Author:** ![Throatwarbler\_Mangrove](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8c91f0/32.png) [@Throatwarbler\_Mangrove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Throatwarbler_Mangrove)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2006, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puny-humans-help-me-understand-and-appreciate-musical-theatre/381642/45 "2006-11-26T00:53:19Z")
What I was really getting at with the question about dubbing is whether the actual actors in the film also provided the singing voices, or were professional singers used? ---
**Author:** ![mack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mack)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2006, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puny-humans-help-me-understand-and-appreciate-musical-theatre/381642/46 "2006-11-26T01:27:17Z")
[QUOTE=kawaiitentaclebeast] What I was really getting at with the question about dubbing is whether the actual actors in the film also provided the singing voices, or were professional singers used? [/QUOTE] Marni Nixon sang for Natalie Wood in West Side Story. ---
**Author:** ![dangermom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@dangermom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangermom)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2006, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puny-humans-help-me-understand-and-appreciate-musical-theatre/381642/47 "2006-11-26T01:49:43Z")
[QUOTE=kawaiitentaclebeast] What I was really getting at with the question about dubbing is whether the actual actors in the film also provided the singing voices, or were professional singers used? [/QUOTE] And if you listen closely to _My Fair Lady_, you can tell that Julie Andrews sang the part for Eliza; Audrey Hepburn couldn’t sing like that, but Julie Andrews wasn’t a well-known star at the time, so the studio didn’t want to take a risk on her, or so I understand. Professor Higgins sang his part, though. Many musical stars did sing their parts, but not always. Sometimes the movie was being made from a Broadway production and many of the same people were used, sometimes the stars were famous “musical people” (like Shirley Jones!), and sometimes they just got actors who could sing. But…not always! ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2006, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puny-humans-help-me-understand-and-appreciate-musical-theatre/381642/48 "2006-11-26T01:58:55Z")
With all the musical fans in this thread, is there any talk on making Wicked into a movie (a la Chicago or Rent) with Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth? I’d love to see it as a movie, since I love the cast recording album but will probably never be able to catch it on stage with those two. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2006, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puny-humans-help-me-understand-and-appreciate-musical-theatre/381642/49 "2006-11-26T02:58:51Z")
[QUOTE=dangermom] And if you listen closely to _My Fair Lady_, you can tell that Julie Andrews sang the part for Eliza; Audrey Hepburn couldn’t sing like that, but Julie Andrews wasn’t a well-known star at the time, so the studio didn’t want to take a risk on her, or so I understand. Professor Higgins sang his part, though. [/QUOTE] Actually, it was the aforementioned Marni Nixon who dubbed Hepburn. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2006, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puny-humans-help-me-understand-and-appreciate-musical-theatre/381642/50 "2006-11-26T03:01:18Z")
[QUOTE=Big Bad Voodoo Lou] With all the musical fans in this thread, is there any talk on making Wicked into a movie (a la Chicago or Rent) with Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth? I’d love to see it as a movie, since I love the cast recording album but will probably never be able to catch it on stage with those two. [/QUOTE] I haven’t heard anything about a movie, though I’d love to see that. Unfortunately, both of the principals have gone on to other things (Menzel quit the show to do the _Rent_ movie, and Chenoweth is all over the place), so nobody is going to see them in the roles again, barring an anniversary run or a bootleg. ---
**Author:** ![Throatwarbler\_Mangrove](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8c91f0/32.png) [@Throatwarbler\_Mangrove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Throatwarbler_Mangrove)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2006, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puny-humans-help-me-understand-and-appreciate-musical-theatre/381642/51 "2006-11-26T03:11:21Z")
Julie Andrews played Eliza in the original Broadway production. Now that I’ve started, I keep remembering musicals that I’ve seen and forgot to mention. - Bride and Prejudice. Not Broadway, but still awesome - Reefer Madness. I liked the music, and it was actually quite clever. ---
**Author:** ![Stan\_Shmenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/94ad74/32.png) [@Stan\_Shmenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stan_Shmenge)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2006, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puny-humans-help-me-understand-and-appreciate-musical-theatre/381642/52 "2006-11-27T15:56:22Z")
A couple of my faves: “Pennies From Heaven”- Vastly underrated Steve Martin vehicle. Too downbeat for the masses so it never made money, but I think it’s just right. “Hair”- Milos Forman does a great job with this one. Again, a downbeat ending. And as a Gilbert and Sullivan fan, I think the Rondstadt version is horrid. You can get some actual D’Oyly Carte on DVD and it is preferred, though not perfect. Better to find a G&S group near you and go see a live performance. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puny-humans-help-me-understand-and-appreciate-musical-theatre/381642.md?page=2)