‘Once’
Based on the 2007 film of the same name, “Once” took Broadway by storm when it opened in 2012 and won the Tony awards for best musical and best book. The minimalist plot and production focuses on a struggling musician on the verge of giving up who finds a true-believing fan who won’t let him abandon his dream.
“Once” is an incredibly unusual show; Broadway took a chance on it, and travel groups should as well. The understated production style recalls the raw magic of “Rent,” and the innovative approach of using the cast as both performers and supporting orchestra creates an intimate setting that is furthered by the use of the bar onstage as a working bar for patrons to visit before the show and during intermission.
Set in Dublin and featuring contemporary-though-folk-inspired music performed entirely by the cast, “Once” is an original musical that breaks the mold of what patrons expect from a Broadway production.
‘Motown: The Musical’
What happens when you bring together Diana Ross, Marvin Gaye, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, the Supremes and the Temptations, and add some Broadway glamour and personal anecdotes from someone who lived through it all? You get “Motown: The Musical,” which has been nominated for four Tony awards and closed in January after playing on Broadway for two years.
In a slight departure from your standard “jukebox musical,” as Broadway labels shows combining the greatest hits of a band, an artist or a generation, “Motown: The Musical” takes its inspiration from the autobiography of Berry Gordy, the founder of Motown Records.
A flashback format, beginning with a celebration of the 25th anniversary of the record company, allows Gordy to weave through episodes and decades to bring together the biggest stars and greatest hits to come out of his company in its heyday in the 1960s and 1970s. With more than 60 songs, the show weaves in everything from “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” to “My Girl” to “You’re Nobody Till Somebody Loves You.”
Coming Soon
In the 2015-2016 Broadway Across America, many theaters are bringing back the perennial hit “The Book of Mormon” while weaving in new shows that have not yet made it on tour but drew huge attention and attendance on Broadway.
The 2013 hit “Matilda,” based on the children’s book by Roald Dahl, garnered four regular Tony awards along with a special honor for the four girls who shared the title role. It’s going on the road for the first time in the 2015-2016 Broadway season and is poised to be even more popular on the road.
Two recent Broadway shows that garnered huge critical acclaim are also making their touring Broadway premieres this coming season while continuing to run on Broadway: “Kinky Boots,” with music by Cyndi Lauper, and last year’s Tony award winner for Best Musical, “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder.”
In time with the release of the new live-action Disney films, “Cinderella” and “Beauty and the Beast” feature heavily in many BAA theater seasons, while another film-to-musical adaptation of a classic, “Dirty Dancing,” will also appear across the country.
