The Jukebox Musical

Broadway's new season is offering up more of this type of show, but all are not created equal.

The jukebox musical has been around for decades. Sometimes it’s a collection of songs and sometimes it tells a story about the artist who made those songs popular. Other times it’s an original story set to music already found on the radio. I’ve had a love/hate relationship for years with these types of Broadway shows. Yes I had a great time at Mamma Mia! and Rock of Ages, but for every The Cher Show there is also a Summer. I even loved The Boy From Oz which is essentially a jukebox of Peter Allen tunes. Yet I wasn’t a fan of Head Over Heels (included an original story using songs from The Go-Go’s).

The past two weeks I’ve seen the two newest jukebox shows to hit Broadway this season…both very different.

& Juliet tells us the original story written by David West Read (one of the writers of Schitt’s Creek) of what would have happened to Juliet (of Romeo fame) had she not died. The characters of William Shakespeare and his wife Anne Hathaway are on hand writing this feminist story in real time as it unfolds. The musical utilizes the songbook of Max Martin (who has written so many hits for several singers). I loved it! While the songs aren’t specifically written to move the story forward, they are all used in such a clever way that I didn’t mind I was listening to pop songs sung by Britney, Pink, Backstreet Boys, and Celine Dion. This cast (many making Broadway debuts) is incredible and talented. The show has wonderful designs from sound to lights to set to projections. Fun choreography (even though I feel ensembles are getting less and less to do the past few season on Broadway). It’s a fresh idea that will bring in an audience simply because some people love to go in knowing the songs to a show. (Much like Moulin Rouge.) This musical jumps to the top of my list so far this season along with Some Like it Hot.

Then on the other end of that spectrum is the “let’s hear about the life of a famous person” musical. Everyone wants to be the next Jersey Boys or Beautiful (the Carole King musical). Tina made it past the pandemic and reopened as did Ain’t to Proud, but both left New York and took it on the road. A Beautiful Noise (the musical of Neil Diamond) shares the word ‘beautiful’ with Carole King…as well as some of the locations, but it’s definitely its own type of show. It does something unique. It sets up the story with older Neil in therapy dissecting his lyrics and his life. Very interesting concept that pulled me right in. However, I wish the creative team would have studied those lyrics more to have each song fit the moments better and used more as book songs instead of presentational. Too much of this show is a Neil Diamond concert with a younger Neil taking the audience on that journey. Will Swenson sounds just like Neil. It’s amazing. But it doesn’t feel like a book musical. I honestly think there are two shows happening on stage. This amazing play with Mark Jacoby playing older Neil is thoughtful and heartbreaking and I would love this entire play. The fact he gets the 11 o’clock number illustrates it’s truly older Neil’s story. I personally wish they could have bridged these two shows together more for a coherent piece of theater. I still enjoyed myself and kept singing Sweet Caroline on the way home…even though I’m more a “depressing Neil Diamond song” type of guy.

Broadway can’t stay alive with just local New Yorkers attending; it needs tourists. Both of these shows cater to that crowd. At A Beautiful Noise, many in the audience felt and acted like they were at an actual concert. (Including the very loud man behind us who went out for more alcohol during Act 2 and fell on the people in his row). After missing Broadway greatly during the pandemic, I applaud producers for trying anything right now to see what will work and can stay open on Broadway. I can see that the Broadway musical is shifting and changing as it pulls from Vegas and cruise ships to bring in audiences. The jukebox musical will always fill that niche that smaller, original musicals can’t. There are so many new shows announcing openings and yet also many announcing closings. Only time will tell what this season will hold and what will stand the test of time. Being a lover of theatre, I continue to go see as much as I possibly can and will expand my mind to allow jukebox musicals to entertain me (in a different way from what this former BMI Musical Theater Workshop member believed a musical should be).