The Secret of My Success (musical)

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The Secret of My Success
MusicMichael Mahler and Alan Schmuckler
LyricsMichael Mahler and Alan Schmuckler
Book Gordon Greenberg and Steve Rosen
SettingNew York City
Basis The Secret of My Success (1987 film)
PremiereFebruary 21, 2020: Paramount Theatre (Aurora, Illinois)

The Secret of My Success is a musical comedy play based on the 1987 movie of the same name starring Michael J. Fox. Music is by Michael Mahler and Alan Schmuckler and book by Gordon Greenberg and Steve Rosen. [1] [2]

Contents

Development

Development started in 2013 when Universal Theatrical Group, which holds the rights to the 1987 film, greenlighted the project. [3] A 2018 reading cast Chris Dwan (Brantley Foster/Carlton Whitfield) and Lilli Cooper (Christy Lockhart) as leads. [2] A 2020 premiere was announced in February 2019 and casting finalized in January 2020. [2] [4]

Production

The musical was mid-run for its world premiere and pre-Broadway tryout at the Paramount Theatre in March 2020 with Sydney Morton (Christy Lockhart) and Billy Harrigan Tighe (Brantley Foster/Carlton Whitfield) as leads and Greenberg directing when production was shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic. [5] [6] [7] It had been scheduled to run from February 21 – March 29, and the final performance was March 12, as Illinois governor J. B. Pritzker shut down all performance venues starting March 13. [6] [8]

Reception

Reviews of the pre-Broadway tryout were generally positive, though most were at least initially puzzled by the choice of source material. [1] [5] [9] [10] Chicago Sun-Times critic Catey Sullivan, calling the movie a "dumpster fire" and wondering "How on God’s green earth could anyone watch the 1987 film’s parade of stereotypes and misogyny and think, 'Hey! Let’s make it a musical!'?", said the musical was "a triumph over its source material." [9] She predicted Broadway success. [9] Chicago Tribune critic Chris Jones questioned whether the storyline, which he said had seemed dated in 1987, was edgy enough to attract a modern Broadway audience. [5] He described the production as a "whip-bang, fast-paced, old-school, we-love-New York kind of show" and complimented its music and production values. [5] Around the Town critic Alan Bresloff had also questioned whether the source material could be made interesting to modern audiences, but that the show had proved him wrong. [1] New City Stage critic Noel Schechter had also questioned the wisdom of using the source material for a new musical but was convinced, crediting the success to the creation of multiple strong female lead characters, including Morton's Christy Lockhart and Heidi Kettenring's Vera Prescott. [10] Jack Helbig of the Chicago Reader was unenthusiastic, calling the book "bland" and "cliched" and the music "forgettable", although he called out some of the performances, including those of Morton and Kettenring, for bringing "heart and fire" to the production. [11]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Bresloff, Alan (February 22, 2020). "The Secret of My Success- a new musical". Around the Town . Archived from the original on December 2, 2020. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 Lefkowitz, Andy (February 5, 2019). "The Secret of My Success Musical Sets World Premiere at Chicago's Paramount Theatre". Broadway.com . Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  3. ↑ Vitello, Barbara (February 15, 2020). "How world premiere of 'The Secret of My Success' came to Paramount Theatre". Daily Herald . Archived from the original on May 16, 2021. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  4. ↑ Lefkowitz, Andy (January 30, 2020). "Sydney Morton & More to Join Billy Harrigan Tighe in World Premiere Secret of My Success Musical". Broadway.com. Archived from the original on March 16, 2020. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Jones, Chris (February 23, 2020). "Review: The Paramount's fine 'Secret of My Success' must drag along a clunky story from the '80s". Chicago Tribune . Archived from the original on December 4, 2020. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  6. 1 2 "The Secret of My Success | February 12 – March 29, 2020". Paramount Theatre . February 4, 2019. Archived from the original on February 11, 2021. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  7. ↑ Gans, Andrew (February 5, 2019). "The Secret of My Success Musical Will Make World Premiere in 2020 at Aurora's Paramount Theatre". Playbill . Archived from the original on October 22, 2020. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  8. ↑ Peikert, Mark (February 24, 2020). "What Did Critics Think of New Musical The Secret of My Success?". Playbill . Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  9. 1 2 3 Sullivan, Catey (February 23, 2020). "'The Secret of My Success' musical breathes new life into movie plot with smart, much-needed updating". Chicago Sun-Times . Archived from the original on February 24, 2020. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  10. 1 2 Schechter, Noel (February 24, 2020). "Review: The Secret of My Success at Paramount Theatre | Newcity Stage". New City Stage . Archived from the original on October 22, 2020. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  11. ↑ Helbig, Jack (February 25, 2020). "The Secret of My Success needs a sharper book". Chicago Reader . Archived from the original on May 2, 2020. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
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