SHINING : A MUSICAL

Happy April Fools Day

With the Carrie musical about to drop out of sight, again, Andy Williamson, author of Brooding, spent some time wondering what a musical version of The Shining might look like.

Check it out at Williamson's sight, The Wordslinger (that there be a mighty fine web name, Mr. Williamson!

His idea was birthed from a discussion we had at a talkstephenking blog post titled, "Musical Confusion," which you can read HERE.

Williamson offers us some of these gems:

SHINING! – a musical in 3 acts

based on the novel by Stephen King
written and directed by Andy Williamson (HA!)

That's great, Andy.  You direct it, and I will be first in line to watch.  Williamson assures us he is only kidding. . . or is he?  HUH!  IS HE?  He writes, "given the over the top, operatic themes of this story, this might could actually work."  YIKES!  I'm intrigued. 

He offers some production ideas, such as (my favorites),
  • O Danny Boy
  • Come and play with us, Danny.  (HOLY SMOKE, BATMAN!  I be freaked out by this one.)
  • You Gotta Watch Her, She Creeps (Boiler Song)
  • Gimme the Bat, Wendy (The Bash Your Brains In Song)
Of course, Andy has these all in the correct order.  I can just hear it!  Unfortunately, all these songs run through my head with the tune of "What's the buzz, what's everyone talkin' about?" from Jesus Christ Superstar.  Well, except O Danny Boy.

The full article is HERE.  There is even a nifty graphic that I am resisting the urge to steal!
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12 comments:

  1. BrooklynApril 1, 2012 at 1:20 AM

    Brilliant!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sharman PrinceApril 1, 2012 at 4:25 AM

    Actually, it's "What's the buzz? Tell me what's happening".

    And I'm sure we'll see "Carrie" again.

    ReplyDelete
  3. David SquyresApril 1, 2012 at 8:17 AM

    You're right, Sherman. But that's not the way it was running through my head. . .

    ReplyDelete
  4. David SquyresApril 1, 2012 at 8:18 AM

    How about CELL as a Michale Jackson style short musical like Thriller.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Bryant BurnetteApril 1, 2012 at 2:05 PM

    Maybe I'm crazy, but I'd kinda like to see a musical version of "The Shining" now...

    ReplyDelete
  6. Andy WilliamsonApril 2, 2012 at 9:58 AM

    Thanks again, David, for your kind words, and for featuring me on your website. I am always entertained by your musings. You and Honk Mahfah have the best SK blogs on the web.

    I updated my post between the time you first read it and when you wrote this article. I didn't add much, just a silly little paragraph about what a 'Misery' musical might sound like. Did you see it? It simply said:

    Are there any other King stories which would lend themselves to the musical stage? I'm thinking Misery is a no brainer … if only to hear Annie Wilkes belt out songs like Number One Fan, You Dirty Bird!, Hog Heaven, They Cheated Us (The Cockadoodie Car Song), and I Wanna Be Your Sledgehammer!

    I thought it was funny. Course, I'm crazy. Like Bryant … only without the leprechauns.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Bryant BurnetteApril 2, 2012 at 1:36 PM

    The Stand, definitely.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Andy WilliamsonApril 2, 2012 at 8:29 PM

      Sounds like a challenge there, Honk. Okay. (Cracks knuckles and neck.) Hmmm, let's see, off the top of my head …

      THE STAND – an opera in 5 acts.

      (You can't not at least open the show with Blue Oyster Cult, so …)

      Don't Fear the Reaper
      Welcome to Arnette (aka Turn Off Your Pumps, Hap)
      Bun in the Oven (Frannie's Song)
      You Ain't No Nice Guy (Larry's Lament)
      Gesundheit! (The Flu Song)
      The Walkin Dude (The Ballad of the Dark Man)
      Baby, Can You Dig Your Man?
      You Come And See Me (in Hemingford Home)
      Huh? What'd You Say? (My Name is Nick)
      M-O-O-N (That Spells a Big Song and Dance Number)
      AAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!! (The Lincoln Tunnel Song)
      Devil's Bride – Oh How I Love to Love Nadine
      Call Me Hawk
      My Life For You! (Trash's Song)
      Mayhap It Is, and Mayhap It Ain't
      Boulder!
      Think Of Them As Cordwood (The Clean-Up Song)
      When You're Smiling! (Harold's Mantra)
      Viva Las Vegas
      Make Yo Stand (The Death of Mother Abigail)
      A Long Walk
      Ow! My Leg! (Stu's Bad Break)
      Tin God
      I'll See You in Hell (aka Nadine Goes Splat)
      Da Bomb! (Reprise: My Life For You)
      M-O-O-N (That Spells STU!)
      Back In Baby's Arms

      Well, that's all I could come up with without making a complete geek out of myself. Too Late? Who said that?

      Delete
    2. Bryant BurnetteApril 3, 2012 at 2:04 AM

      I think my favorite is "Make Yo Stand." But I have a question:

      Where's "Captain Trips," the big civilization-bites-the-dust Act I closer?!?

      (By the way, this may seem ridiculous on the face of things, but it's at LEAST as good an idea as the Carrie musical ever was!)

      Delete
    3. Andy WilliamsonApril 3, 2012 at 6:02 AM

      I was thinking as I drifted off to sleep last night that I accidentally left off Captain Trips. Sorry. My Bad. I also could have added: AH-CHOO! (The Tube Neck Song.)

      I also liked Make Yo Stand (The Death of Mother Abigail), but for some reason last night I got the giggles thinking about Ow! My Leg! (Stu's Bad Break). Just the obviousness of it.

      I have heard bits of music from 'Carrie - the musical', and I think what's missing is a sense of FUN! Just because material is dark or disturbing doesn't mean you can't add a bit of levity to it. Especially if you are trying to translate it to the musical stage.

      Here's hoping that the about-to-open Ghost Brothers of Darkland County (the new musical written by Stephen King and John Mellancamp) remembers that.

      So … any other suggestions? Anyone?

      Delete

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