Alan Menken | |
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Background information | |
Birth name | Alan Irwin Menken [1] |
Born | Manhattan, New York City, U.S. | July 22, 1949
Genres | |
Occupations |
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Years active | 1972–present |
Labels | |
Spouse | Janis Roswick (m. 1972) |
Website | alanmenken-live |
Alan Irwin Menken [1] (born July 22, 1949) is an American composer and conductor, best known for his scores and songs for films produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and Skydance Animation. Menken's contributions to The Little Mermaid (1989), Beauty and the Beast (1991), Aladdin (1992), and Pocahontas (1995) won him two Academy Awards for each film. He also composed the scores and songs for Little Shop of Horrors (1986), Newsies (1992), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), Hercules (1997), Home on the Range (2004), Enchanted (2007), Tangled (2010), Disenchanted (2022), and Spellbound (2024), among others. His accolades include winning eight Academy Awards — becoming the second most prolific Oscar winner in the music categories after Alfred Newman (who has 9 Oscars), a Tony Award, eleven Grammy Awards, seven Golden Globe Awards, and a Daytime Emmy Award. Menken is one of twenty-one people to have won an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar and a Tony ("an EGOT"). [2]
He is also known for his work in musical theater for Broadway and elsewhere. Some of these works are based on his Disney films, but other stage hits include Little Shop of Horrors (1982), A Christmas Carol (1994), and Sister Act (2009).
Menken has collaborated with lyricists such as Muriel Robinson, David Zippel, Howard Ashman, Stephen Schwartz, David Crane, Seth Friedman, Marta Kauffman, Steve Brown, Tom Eyen, David Rogers, Dennis Green, David Spencer, Jack Feldman, Tim Rice, Lynn Ahrens, Glenn Slater, Chad Beguelin, Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, Ariel Shaffir, Kyle Hunter, Phil Johnston, Tom MacDougall, Benj Pasek, Justin Paul, and Lin-Manuel Miranda.
Alan Irwin Menken was born on July 22, 1949, at French Hospital in Manhattan, to Judith and Norman Menken. His father was a boogie-woogie piano-playing dentist, and his mother was an actress, dancer and playwright. [3] His family was Jewish. [4] Menken developed an interest in music at an early age, taking piano and violin lessons. He began to compose at an early age. [5] At age nine, at the New York Federation of Music Clubs Junior Composers Contest, his original composition "Bouree" was rated Superior and Excellent by the judges.
Menken noted that "Before college, I was writing songs to further my dream of being the next Bob Dylan. A lot of guitar songs – I was composing on piano before that." [6]
He attended New Rochelle High School in New Rochelle, New York, and graduated in 1967. Menken remembers: "I'd make up my own Bach fugues and Beethoven sonatas because I was bored with the piano and I didn't want to practice; so I'd go off on tangents". [7] He then enrolled at New York University. [8] Menken graduated in 1972 from University College of Arts and Science at the Heights campus, which is now the College of Arts and Science. [9] After college, he attended the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop. [10]
Menken recalled: "First, I was pre-med. I thought I'd be a dentist like my dad. Finally, I got a degree in music, but I didn't care about musicology. It wasn't until I joined BMI Workshop ... under Lehman Engel, and walked into a room with other composers that I knew this was it." [7]
After graduating, Menken's plan was to become either a rock star or a recording artist. His interest in writing musicals increased when he joined the Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) Musical Theatre Workshop and was mentored by Lehman Engel. [10] From 1974 to 1978, he showcased various BMI workshop works, such as Midnight, Apartment House (lyric by Muriel Robinson), Conversations with Pierre, [10] Harry the Rat and Messiah on Mott Street (lyrics by David Spencer).[ citation needed ]
According to Menken, during this period, he "worked as a ballet and modern dance accompanist, a musical director for club acts, a jingle writer, arranger, a songwriter for Sesame Street and a vocal coach". He performed his material at clubs like The Ballroom, Reno Sweeny and Tramps. [11]
In 1976, John Wilson reported for The New York Times that members of Engel's BMI Workshop began performing as part of the "Broadway at the Ballroom" series: "The opening workshop program ... featured Maury Yeston and Alan Menken, both playing their piano accompaniment and singing songs they have written for potential musicals." [12] Wilson reviewed a performance at the Ballroom in 1977 where Menken accompanied a singer: "In the current cabaret world, a piano accompanist is no longer expected to merely play piano for a singer. More and more, pianists can be heard joining in vocally, harmonizing with the singer, creating a background of shouts and exclamations or even doing brief passages of solo singing." [13]
Menken contributed material to revues like New York's Back in Town, Big Apple Country, The Present Tense (1977), [14] Real Life Funnies (Off-Broadway, 1981), [15] Diamonds (Off-Broadway, 1984), and Personals (Off-Off-Broadway, 1985). [16] His revue Patch, Patch, Patch ran at the West Bank Cafe in New York City in 1979 and featured Chip Zien. The New York Times reviewer Mel Gussow wrote: "The title song ... refers to a life's passage. According to Alan Menken ... after age 30 it is a downhill plunge." [17]
Menken wrote several shows that were not produced, including Atina, Evil Queen of the Galaxy (1980), with lyrics by Steve Brown. He also wrote The Thorn with lyrics by Brown, which was commissioned by Divine in 1980. This was a parody of the film The Rose , but they could not raise the money to have it produced. [18] He collaborated with Howard Ashman in an uncompleted musical called Babe (c. 1981), [19] [20] with Tom Eyen in Kicks: The Showgirl Musical (1984), [21] and with David Rogers in The Dream in Royal Street (c. 1981), which was an adaptation of A Midsummer Night's Dream . [20] Menken contributed music for the film The Line (1980), directed by Robert J. Siegel. [22]
Menken finally achieved success as a composer when playwright Howard Ashman chose him and Engel to write the music for his musical adaptation of Kurt Vonnegut's novel God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater . The musical opened in 1979 at the WPA Theater [23] to excellent reviews [23] and modest box office. It transferred after several months to the Off-Broadway Entermedia Theater, where it ran for an additional six weeks. [24] [25] [26] [27]
Menken and Ashman wrote their next musical, Little Shop of Horrors , for a cast of only 9 performers, including a puppeteer. This musical is based on the 1960 black comedy film The Little Shop of Horrors . It opened at WPA Theater in 1982 to warm reviews. It moved to the Off Broadway Orpheum Theatre in the East Village, Manhattan, where it ran for five years. The musical set the box-office record for highest grossing Off-Broadway show of all time. It toured around the world, won theater awards and was adapted as a 1986 musical film starring Rick Moranis that earned Menken and Ashman their first Oscar nomination for the song "Mean Green Mother from Outer Space". [28] For his body of work in musical theatre, he was awarded the BMI Career Achievement Award in 1983. [3]
In 1987, Menken and lyricist David Spencer's adaptation The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz , based on the 1959 novel of the same name, was produced in Philadelphia. After substantial re-writes, it was produced in 2015 in Montreal. [29] [30] In 1992, the WPA Theatre produced Menken's Weird Romance, also with lyrics by Spencer. [31] Menken's musical based on the Charles Dickens novella A Christmas Carol , with lyrics by Lynn Ahrens and book by Mike Ockrent, debuted at Madison Square Garden's Paramount Theater in 1994. [32] The show proved successful and was an annual New York holiday event. [33]
On the strength of the success of Little Shop of Horrors, Menken and Ashman were hired by Walt Disney Studios to write the music for The Little Mermaid (1989). The challenge was to create an animated musical film of this Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale that could sit alongside the Disney films Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Cinderella . The Little Mermaid opened to critical and commercial success and signaled a new Disney era called the Disney Renaissance. [34] The film gave them their first Academy Award win: Best Song for the song "Under the Sea". Menken also won the 1989 Academy Award for Best Score. [8] [35]
Menken and Ashman's Beauty and the Beast garnered them three 1991 Academy Award nominations for Best Song, winning for its title song. [35] Menken won another Academy Award for Best Score. The two were working on Aladdin at the time of Ashman's death in 1991. Ashman wrote only three songs in the film and Menken collaborated with Tim Rice, who was then working on The Lion King , to write the rest of the songs for the film. The film won an Academy Award in 1992 for Best Song, "A Whole New World". [35] Menken also won the Oscar for Best Score. Menken's live-action musical film Newsies , with lyrics by Jack Feldman, was released in 1992.
Three more animated musical films followed. Menken collaborated with Stephen Schwartz for Pocahontas , for which the two won two Academy Awards: Best Song and Best Musical or Comedy Score. In 1996, the same musical team created the songs, and Menken, the score, for The Hunchback of Notre Dame . In 1997, Menken reunited with his early collaborator, David Zippel, for his last film in the era, Hercules . [36]
Menken also wrote the music for the Michael J. Fox vehicle Life with Mikey (1993), [37] the holiday film Noel (2004) [38] and Mirror Mirror (2012). [39] His other film scores for Disney have included Home on the Range (2004), the Tim Allen remake of The Shaggy Dog (2006), Enchanted (2007), and Tangled (2010).
In March 2017, Disney released a live-action adaptation of Beauty and the Beast, directed by Bill Condon and starring Emma Watson and Dan Stevens, with the songs from the 1991 film and new material by Menken and Rice. [40] Menken collaborated with Benj Pasek and Justin Paul on writing new songs for the 2019 live-action version of Aladdin, directed by Guy Ritchie. [41]
Menken again worked with Stephen Schwartz to write new songs for Disenchanted , the sequel to Enchanted, [42] Menken also worked on new music for a live-action film adaptation of The Little Mermaid, directed by Rob Marshall, with longtime The Little Mermaid fan Lin-Manuel Miranda, [43] whom Menken knew since the former's childhood, as Miranda went to the same school as Menken's niece. [44] Menken is also working alongside former Disney chief creative officer John Lasseter on a project at Skydance Animation. [45] On May 20, 2020, the project was revealed to be Vicky Jenson's Spellbound . [46] Menken will co-write songs for Spellbound alongside collaborated with lyricist Glenn Slater, with whom he worked on Home on the Range and Tangled. [46] Menken is also reportedly attached to a sequel to Aladdin. [47] Menken was set to work with Schwartz to write new songs for a remake of The Hunchback of Notre Dame , which Menken would score. [48] However, in May 2023, Menken suggested that the development had been stalled due to the original movie's content and themes. [49]
With eight Academy Awards, only composer Alfred Newman (nine wins), art director Cedric Gibbons (11 wins) and Walt Disney (22 wins) have received more Academy Awards than Menken. He is tied for fourth place with late costume designer Edith Head, and currently holds the record for the most wins for a living person.[ citation needed ] [50]
Menken debuted on Broadway with a musical theater adaptation of Beauty and the Beast that opened in 1994 and ran for 13 years before closing in 2007. In 1997, he collaborated with lyricist Tim Rice on a musical, King David , based on the biblical character, which was performed in a concert version on Broadway at the New Amsterdam Theatre. Little Shop of Horrors played on Broadway from 2003 to 2004. [51]
He next created the stage version of The Little Mermaid , which played on Broadway from 2008 to 2009 and for which he received a nomination for a Tony Award for Best Score. [51] Menken's stage adaptation of Sister Act debuted in London in 2009, and opened on Broadway in 2011. He was nominated for another Tony Award for Best Score. [52] Menken received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2010. [53] In December 2010, he was a guest on the NPR quiz show Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! . [54]
In 2012, Menken won a Tony Award for Best Score for his musical adaptation of Newsies , which ran until 2014. He also wrote the music for Leap of Faith , which had a brief run on Broadway in 2012. His stage adaptation of Aladdin opened on Broadway in 2014, earning him another Tony nomination for Best Score. [51] In 2013, he was a guest at the annual Junior Theatre Festival in Atlanta, Georgia, and was honored with the Junior Theater Festival Award. [55] He gave a concert there, including music that was cut from various productions, while talking about his creative process.[ citation needed ]
Menken's stage adaptation of The Hunchback of Notre Dame played at La Jolla Playhouse, California, in 2014. [56] [57] The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz was revived in Montreal in 2015, [29] [30] and A Bronx Tale: The Musical played at the Paper Mill Playhouse in 2016. [58] Menken is currently working on stage musical adaptations of Night at the Museum [45] and Animal Farm . [59]
As of 2019, Menken reunites with his Newsies creators Jack Feldman and Harvey Fierstein to develop a new musical called Greetings from Niagara Falls. A reading was held in January 2019; however, there is no word on future plans for the project at this time. [60]
From 1989 to 1990, Menken and Howard Ashman wrote songs for the popular puppet TV show Sesame Street . [61] In 2008, Menken said that his work on Sesame Street was "pathetic money, but it still had some prestige to it. It was on the air and [he] was getting some royalties". [61] The duo also wrote a song titled "Wonderful Ways to Say No" for the 1990 animated anti-drug special Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue .
In 2015, Menken co-composed the score for the musical television series Galavant alongside Christopher Lennertz, reuniting him with Tangled screenwriter Dan Fogelman. [62] Menken also co-wrote songs for the series alongside Glenn Slater. [63] The series lasted two seasons, first airing on January 4, 2015, and last airing on January 31, 2016. [64] In 2017, Menken and Slater returned to write songs for the animated series Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure , which is set after the events of Tangled. [65] The series ended in 2020, after three seasons. On July 26, 2020, Menken and Slater won the Daytime Emmy Award for Original Song in a Children's, Young Adult or Animated Program for the song titled "Waiting in the Wings". [2] [66]
Menken wrote songs for a prospective prequel/spin-off series to 2017's Beauty and the Beast titled Little Town , which would be centered on Gaston and LeFou. [45] The series would be released on Disney's streaming service, Disney+, [45] [67] and Menken would also be an executive-producer on the series. [68] In February 2022, it was reported that the series would not go forward for now. [69]
Menken was introduced to ballet dancer Janis Roswick while working with the Downtown Ballet Company. They have been married since November 1972 and live in North Salem, New York with their two daughters, Anna and Nora. [70] [ failed verification ]
Menken has said he prefers for his compositions to be "hummable", writing, "Songs should have an infectious melody and rhythm ... They should elicit an emotion, of happiness, or of celebration, or of sadness, or of sorrow, or of love, or of laughter — whatever". [71] When writing songs for a Disney film, he is usually trying to progress the story, while being appropriate for each character and dramatic situation. [71] He gathers as much information as possible about a film project before composing at a piano, namely "What's the story? Who's the protagonist? Where would a song fit? What's the reason for singing?". [71] Menken has worked with numerous lyricists throughout his career. His most famous collaboration remains his songwriting partnership with Ashman, despite having worked together for a relatively short period of time. [72]
Steve Hochman of Grammy.com said Menken "ranks among the top composers in film and theater", writing, "his music is part of the DNA of several generations of children and parents alike". [73] According to Jeff Bond of The Hollywood Reporter , Menken is largely responsible for redefining the musical genre for a contemporary audience both in film and on stage, calling him "one of film music’s most versatile craftspeople". [74] His work has influenced a generation of songwriters across film and stage. [72] Menken has noted his influence on songwriters and musicians such as Benj Pasek, Justin Paul, Robert Lopez, Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Elton John, and Sara Bareilles, although he maintains he does not have a specific protege. [72]
Menken is an EGOT winner, having won at least one Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony for his work. [75]
Year | Title | Director(s) | Credited as | Notes | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Composer | Songwriter | Score producer | Actor | ||||
1972 | A Dancer's Life | William Richert | No | No | No | Yes | Documentary film |
1986 | Little Shop of Horrors | Frank Oz | No | Yes | No | No | Composed original and new songs with lyrics by Howard Ashman; score by Miles Goodman |
1989 | The Little Mermaid | John Musker Ron Clements | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | First score for an animated film Composed songs with lyrics by Howard Ashman |
1990 | Rocky V | John G. Avildsen | No | Yes | No | No | Composed song "Measure of a Man"; score by Bill Conti |
1991 | Beauty and the Beast | Gary Trousdale Kirk Wise | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Composed songs with lyrics by Howard Ashman |
1992 | Newsies | Kenny Ortega | No | Yes | No | No | Composed songs with lyrics by Jack Feldman; score by J.A.C. Redford |
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York | Chris Columbus | No | Yes | No | No | Composed song "My Christmas Tree" with lyrics by Jack Feldman; score by John Williams | |
Aladdin | John Musker Ron Clements | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Composed songs with lyrics by Howard Ashman & Tim Rice | |
1993 | Life with Mikey | James Lapine | Yes | Yes | No | No | Composed songs "Cold Enough to Snow" and "Life with Mikey Theme" with lyrics by Stephen Schwartz & Jack Feldman |
1995 | Pocahontas | Mike Gabriel Eric Goldberg | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Composed songs with lyrics by Stephen Schwartz |
1996 | The Hunchback of Notre Dame | Gary Trousdale Kirk Wise | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | |
1997 | Hercules | John Musker Ron Clements | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Composed songs with lyrics by David Zippel |
2004 | Home on the Range | Will Finn John Sanford | Yes | Yes | No | No | Composed songs with lyrics by Glenn Slater |
Noel | Chazz Palminteri | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Composed song "Winter Light" with lyrics by Stephen Schwartz | |
2006 | The Shaggy Dog | Brian Robbins | Yes | No | No | No | |
2007 | Enchanted | Kevin Lima | Yes | Yes | No | No | Composed songs with lyrics by Stephen Schwartz |
2010 | Tangled | Byron Howard Nathan Greno | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Composed songs with lyrics by Glenn Slater |
2011 | Captain America: The First Avenger | Joe Johnston | No | Yes | No | No | Composed "Star Spangled Man" with lyrics by David Zippel; score by Alan Silvestri |
Jock the Hero Dog | Duncan MacNeillie | No | Yes | No | No | Composed song "Howling at the moon" with lyrics by Tim Rice; score by Klaus Badelt and Ian Honeyman | |
2012 | Mirror Mirror | Tarsem Singh | Yes | No | No | No | |
2016 | Sausage Party | Conrad Vernon Greg Tiernan | Yes | Yes | No | No | Co-composer with Christopher Lennertz; Composed song "The Great Beyond" with lyrics by Glenn Slater, Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, Ariel Shaffir and Kyle Hunter |
Aria for a Cow | Dan Lund | Yes | Yes | No | No | Short film; Composed song "Aria" with lyrics by Howard Ashman [76] | |
2017 | Beauty and the Beast | Bill Condon | Yes | Yes | No | No | Returned from the 1991 animated film Composed original songs with lyrics by Howard Ashman; Composed new songs with Tim Rice |
2018 | Ralph Breaks the Internet | Rich Moore Phil Johnston | No | Yes | No | No | Composed songs "In This Place" and "A Place Called Slaughter Race" with lyrics by Phil Johnston & Tom MacDougall; score by Henry Jackman |
Holmes & Watson | Etan Cohen | No | Yes | No | No | Composed song "Strange Sensation" with lyrics by Glenn Slater; score by Mark Mothersbaugh | |
Howard | Don Hahn | Yes | No | No | Yes | Documentary film Disney+ original film Limited theatrical run in 2018; official release in 2020 | |
2019 | Aladdin | Guy Ritchie | Yes | Yes | No | No | Returned to score from the 1992 animated film Composed original songs with lyrics by Howard Ashman & Tim Rice; Composed new songs with lyrics by Benj Pasek & Justin Paul |
2022 | Disenchanted | Adam Shankman | Yes | Yes | No | No | Disney+ original film Returned from the 2007 film Composed songs with lyrics by Stephen Schwartz [77] |
2023 | The Little Mermaid | Rob Marshall | Yes | Yes | No | No | Returned to score from the 1989 animated film Composed original songs with lyrics by Howard Ashman; Composed new songs with lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda |
2024 | Spellbound [46] | Vicky Jenson | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Netflix original film Composed songs with lyrics by Glenn Slater |
Year | Title | Credited as | Notes | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Composer | Songwriter | Score producer | Executive producer | Actor | |||
1989–1990 | Sesame Street | No | Yes | No | No | No | Composed "Grouchelot", "What is Friend?", "It's Gonna Get Dirty Again," "Snuffle Friends," "Martian Family (Yip Yip Song)," "Monster Up and Down", "Pond Full of Fish" and "Todos un Pueblo" |
1989 | Polly | No | Yes | No | No | No | Television film Composed song "By Your Side" with lyrics by Jack Feldman; score by Joel McNeely |
1990 | Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue | No | Yes | No | No | No | TV special Composed "Wonderful Ways to Say No" with lyrics by Howard Ashman; score by Richard Kosinski, Sam Winans, Paul Buckmaster, Bill Reichenbach, Bob Mann and Guy Moon |
1992 | Lincoln | Yes | No | No | No | No | Television film |
2004 | A Christmas Carol | No | Yes | No | No | No | Television film Composed songs with lyrics by Lynn Ahrens; score by Michael Kosarin |
2013 | The Neighbors | No | Yes | No | No | No | Episode: "Sing Like a Larry Bird" Composed "More or Less The Kind of Thing You May or May Not Possibly See on Broadway", "Giselle", "More or Less The Kind of Thing You May or May Not Possibly See on Broadway" (Reprise) |
2015–2016 | Galavant | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Composed complete soundtrack, score co-composed with Christopher Lennertz |
2017 | Tangled: Before Ever After | No | Yes | No | No | No | Television film Disney Channel original film Composed songs with lyrics by Glenn Slater; score by Kevin Kliesch |
2017–2020 | Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure [78] | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Composed complete soundtrack, score composed by Kevin Kliesch |
2019 | The Little Mermaid Live! | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | TV special Composed original songs with lyrics by Howard Ashman; Composed new songs with lyrics by Glenn Slater |
2020 | Central Park | No | Yes | No | No | No | Episode: "Dog Spray Afternoon" Composed song "Spoiler Alert" with lyrics by Glenn Slater |
2021 | The Falcon and the Winter Soldier | No | Yes | No | No | No | Episode: "The Star-Spangled Man" Composed "Star Spangled Man" with lyrics by David Zippel for Captain America: The First Avenger ; score by Henry Jackman |
2022 | Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | TV special Composed original songs with lyrics by Howard Ashman; Composed new songs with lyrics by Tim Rice |
Alan Menken has received eight Academy Awards (and nineteen nominations), eleven Grammy Awards (and twenty-four nominations), one Tony Award (and four nominations), and one Daytime Emmy Award. He has also received seven Golden Globe Awards (and sixteen nominations), one Drama Desk Award (and five nominations), and three Outer Critics Awards.
He was made a Disney Legend in 2002 and was the recipient of a Richard Kirk Career Achievement Award in 1998, a Freddie G. Award for Musical Excellence in 2013, and The Oscar Hammerstein Award in 2013, among others.
The American Film Institute included the title song from the film Beauty and the Beast , in the AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs. Five other songs from his Disney films were nominated:
In 2006, AFI listed its 25 greatest movie musicals, with Beauty and the Beast (1991) ranked 22nd. It is the only animated musical film on the list. Four of his other film musicals were also nominated: [81]
In 2019, Menken finally accepted the Razzie Award for "Worst Original Song" he won at the 13th Golden Raspberry Awards (1993) for "High Times, Hard Times" from Newsies (1992), becoming the first person to win a Razzie and Oscar in the same year. [82] [83] Menken wrote the music for the song, and shared the award with lyricist Jack Feldman.
In 2020, Menken reached EGOT status when he won the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Song in a Children's, Young Adult or Animated Program for co-writing the song "Waiting in the Wings" for Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure . [2] [84]
Beauty and the Beast is a 1991 American animated musical romantic fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It is based on the 1756 fairy tale by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont, in turn an abridged version of the 1740 story by Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve. The film also incorporates ideas from the 1946 French film directed by Jean Cocteau. The film was directed by Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise, and produced by Don Hahn, from a screenplay by Linda Woolverton.
The Little Mermaid is a 1989 American animated musical fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation in association with Silver Screen Partners IV and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It is loosely based on the 1837 Danish fairy tale "The Little Mermaid" by Hans Christian Andersen. The film was written and directed by John Musker and Ron Clements and produced by Musker and Howard Ashman, who also wrote the film's songs with Alan Menken, who also composed the film's score. Featuring the voices of René Auberjonois, Christopher Daniel Barnes, Jodi Benson, Pat Carroll, Paddi Edwards, Buddy Hackett, Jason Marin, Kenneth Mars, Ben Wright, and Samuel E. Wright, The Little Mermaid tells the story of a teenage mermaid princess named Ariel, who dreams of becoming human and falls in love with a human prince named Eric, which leads her to make a magic deal with the sea witch, Ursula, to become human and be with him.
Howard Elliott Ashman was an American playwright, lyricist and stage director. He is most widely known for his work on feature films for Walt Disney Animation Studios, for which Ashman wrote the lyrics and Alan Menken composed the music. Ashman has been credited as being a main driving force behind the Disney Renaissance. His work included songs for Little Shop of Horrors, The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and Aladdin. Tim Rice took over to write the rest of the songs for the latter film after Ashman's death in 1991.
Beauty and the Beast is a Disney stage musical with music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice, and a book by Linda Woolverton. Adapted from Walt Disney Pictures' animated film Beauty and the Beast – which in turn had been based on the fairy tale "Beauty and the Beast" by French author Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont – Beauty and the Beast tells the story of an unkind prince who has been magically transformed into an unsightly creature as punishment for his selfish ways. To revert into his true human form, the Beast must learn to love a bright, beautiful young lady who he has imprisoned in his enchanted castle and earn her love in return before it is too late.
Glenn Slater is an American lyricist for musical theatre. He has collaborated with Alan Menken, Christopher Lennertz, Andrew Lloyd Webber, among other composers. He was nominated for three Tony Awards for Best Original Score for the Broadway version of The Little Mermaid at the 62nd Tony Awards in 2008, Sister Act at the 65th Tony Awards in 2011, and School of Rock at the 70th Tony Awards in 2016.
Disney Theatrical Productions Limited (DTP), also known as Disney on Broadway, is the stageplay and musical production company of the Disney Theatrical Group, a subsidiary of Disney Entertainment, a major division and business unit of The Walt Disney Company.
"Be Our Guest" is a song written by lyricist Howard Ashman and composer Alan Menken for Walt Disney Pictures' animated film Beauty and the Beast (1991). Recorded by American actor Jerry Orbach, English actress Angela Lansbury, and the additional voice acting choir of the 1991 animated film. "Be Our Guest" is a large-scale Broadway-inspired musical number that takes place during the first half of Beauty and the Beast, performed by the castle's staff of enchanted objects in an elaborate attempt to welcome Belle. Menken initially intended for the melody of "Be Our Guest" to be temporary but was ultimately unable to compose a satisfying one with which to replace it. The song had originally been intended for Belle's father Maurice. However, "Be Our Guest" had to be entirely re-written as the story evolved in order to return its focus to Belle.
Aladdin: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the soundtrack for the 1992 Disney animated film Aladdin. The album was released by Walt Disney Records on CD and cassette tape on October 27, 1992. The soundtrack was intertwined with demos, work tapes and unreleased masters, as well as original scores in 1994 in a four-disc box set entitled The Music Behind the Magic: The Musical Artistry of Alan Menken, Howard Ashman & Tim Rice. A remastered reissue with altered lyrics and new artwork was released on March 27, 2001. A special edition reissue featuring two previously released demos and new artwork was released on September 28, 2004. The Legacy Collection: Aladdin was released on September 9, 2022, to coincide with the 30th anniversary of Aladdin.
Beauty and the Beast: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the official soundtrack album to the 1991 Disney animated film Beauty and the Beast. Originally released on October 22, 1991, by Walt Disney Records, the album's first half – tracks 2 to 9 – generally contains the film's musical numbers, all of which were written by composer Alan Menken and lyricist Howard Ashman, while its latter half – tracks 10 to 14 – features its musical score, composed solely by Menken. While the majority of the album's content remains within the musical theatre genre, its songs have also been influenced by French, classical, pop and Broadway music. Credited to Various Artists, Beauty and the Beast: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack features performances by the film's main cast – Paige O'Hara, Richard White, Jesse Corti, Jerry Orbach, Angela Lansbury, Robby Benson and David Ogden Stiers – in order of appearance. Additionally, the album features recording artists Celine Dion and Peabo Bryson, who perform a pop rendition of the film's theme song of the same name, which simultaneously serves as the soundtrack's only single.
The Disney Renaissance was a period from 1989 to 1999 during which Walt Disney Feature Animation returned to producing critically and commercially successful animated films. The ten feature films associated with this period are The Little Mermaid (1989), The Rescuers Down Under (1990), Beauty and the Beast (1991), Aladdin (1992), The Lion King (1994), Pocahontas (1995), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), Hercules (1997), Mulan (1998), and Tarzan (1999).
The Music Behind the Magic: The Musical Artistry of Alan Menken, Howard Ashman & Tim Rice is a four-disc box set highlighting the creative evolution behind the music of Disney's The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin. Released on November 22, 1994 on Walt Disney Records, the set includes work tape recordings, demos, previously released final recordings, and unreleased master recordings of songs and score cues.
"I See the Light" is a song written by composer Alan Menken and lyricist Glenn Slater for Walt Disney Animation Studios' animated film Tangled (2010). A duet originally recorded by American recording artist and actress Mandy Moore and American actor Zachary Levi in their respective film roles as main characters Rapunzel and Flynn Rider, the folk-inspired pop ballad serves as both the film's love and theme song. Lyrically, "I See the Light" describes the developing romantic relationship between Rapunzel and Flynn, and is featured as the seventh track on the film's soundtrack album.
Daniel Troob is an American arranger and orchestrator best known for his contributions to the Disney blockbusters of the 1990s & 2000s. He won Drama Desk awards for Big River (1985) and Rodgers & Hammersteins' "Cinderella" (2013).
"Belle" is a song written by lyricist Howard Ashman and composer Alan Menken for Disney's animated film Beauty and the Beast (1991). Recorded by American actors Paige O'Hara and Richard White, "Belle" is a mid-tempo classical music-inspired song that borrows elements from Broadway and musical theatre. It was the first song Ashman and Menken wrote for Beauty and the Beast, which they feared Disney would reject due to its length and complexity, but the film's producers ultimately liked the song.
Aladdin is a stage musical based on Disney's 1992 animated feature film of the same name with a book by Chad Beguelin, music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Howard Ashman, Tim Rice and Beguelin. It resurrects three songs written by Menken and Ashman for the film but not used, and adds four songs written by Menken and Beguelin.
"Proud of Your Boy" is a song written by lyricist Howard Ashman and composer Alan Menken. Originally intended for Disney's animated film Aladdin (1992), the song was omitted when Aladdin's mother was written out of the story. After being discarded, "Proud of Your Boy" remained largely undiscovered by audiences until Walt Disney Records released Ashman and Menken's demo on a compilation album in 1994, after which it gradually gained popularity. The song was eventually restored for the film's stage musical adaptation in 2011, originally performed and recorded by American actor Adam Jacobs. Lyrically, "Proud of Your Boy" is about a young man promising his mother that he will change his mischievous ways and ultimately make her proud.
Walt Disney Records: The Legacy Collection is a compilation album series produced and released by Walt Disney Records.
"Evermore" is a song written by composer Alan Menken and lyricist Tim Rice for the musical fantasy film Beauty and the Beast (2017), a live-action remake of Disney's 1991 animated film of the same name. Originally recorded for the film by English actor Dan Stevens, who performs the song in his starring role as the eponymous Beast, "Evermore" was first released as a single by American singer Josh Groban on March 3, 2017. Stevens' version became available on March 10, 2017 when the film's soundtrack was released online, while Groban's cover is played during the film's closing credits.
Howard is a 2018 American documentary film written and directed by Don Hahn about the life of songwriter Howard Ashman. It received positive reviews from critics.
Beauty and the Beast is the cast album performed by the original Broadway cast members from the 1994 Disney stage musical Beauty and the Beast, with music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice, and a book by Linda Woolverton. It is adapted from Walt Disney Pictures' 1991 animated musical film of the same name, which in turn had been based on the classic French fairy tale by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont. The cast album was released on CD and cassette formats, and further re-issued on digital formats in 1999.
As planned right now, there's more singing and dancing than there was in the first one, and it's all original music, with Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz coming back to do it.