Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical

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Dr. Seuss'
How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
The Musical
Grinchbroadway-poster.gif
Promotional poster
MusicMel Marvin
Lyrics Timothy Mason
Book Timothy Mason
Basis How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
by Dr. Seuss
Productions1998 San Diego
2006 Broadway
2007 Broadway revival
2008 US tour
2010 US tour
2019 UK tour

Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical, or simply How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical, is a seasonal musical stage adaptation of the 1957 Dr. Seuss book How the Grinch Stole Christmas! . [1] Versions of the musical have been produced since the 1990s, including a Broadway production that ran during two Christmas seasons.

Contents

Productions

Minneapolis

Children's Theatre Company in Minneapolis first commissioned Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas in 1994. In 2022, they presented their version of the show for the 10th time. [2]

San Diego

The musical was performed at the Old Globe Theatre, in San Diego, California, where it has run every Christmas season since 1998. The production was directed by Jack O'Brien. [3] This version featured songs from the 1966 animated television special, which had music by Albert Hague and lyrics by Seuss. Newcomer Vanessa Hudgens played Cindy Lou Who (in 1998 and 1999). The original cast also featured Guy Paul as The Grinch, Don Lee Sparks as Old Max, and Rusty Ross as Young Max. [4] Notable subsequent Grinches at the Old Globe include Jay Goede, Steve Blanchard, Jeff Skowron, and Andrew Polec. [5] [6] Notable actors who have played Old Max include Ken Page, Steve Gunderson, and John Treacy Egan. [5] [7]

For the 2007 Christmas season, three new songs were added to both this and the subsequent Broadway production. These songs are "This Time of Year", "It's the Thought That Counts" and "Fah Who Foraze" (which was part of the television special). [8]

Broadway

The musical was produced on Broadway by Running Subway (James Sanna). This version with book and lyrics by Timothy Mason, original score by Mel Marvin, was directed by Matt August and created and conceived by Jack O'Brien. Patrick Page starred as the Grinch. [3] The Broadway production debuted on November 8, 2006, at the Foxwoods Theatre (then the Hilton theatre) for the Christmas season and closed on January 7, 2007. This production was the first Broadway musical to play 12 performances a week. [9] In the first week of December 2006, the musical topped the Broadway Box Office grosses, ending Wicked's top-grossing streak that had lasted 100 weeks. [10]

The musical began a second limited run at the St. James Theatre on November 9, 2007, with Patrick Page returning to the title role and starring John Cullum as Old Max. [11] It was originally planned that the show would run continuously with up to 15 performances a week until January 6, 2008, [12] but the show was halted before the morning matinee of November 10 as a result of the 2007 Broadway stagehand strike. [13] The show remained dark due to failed negotiations. [14] The producers brought the matter to court and were granted an injunction enabling the show to resume on November 23. [15] The musical staged a total of 11 performances over the Thanksgiving weekend (November 23 to 25), an unusual occurrence for Broadway shows. [16]

2008: US tour

A limited-engagement tour ran during the Christmas season of 2008. The musical started at the Hippodrome in Baltimore, Maryland, from November 11 to 23, 2008, and then played the Citi Performing Arts Center Wang Theatre in Boston, Massachusetts, from November 26 to December 28. Matt August directed the show, with John DeLuca as original choreographer and Bob Richard as co-choreographer. The cast included Stefán Karl Stefánsson as the Grinch, Walter Charles as Old Max, and Andrew Keenan-Bolger as Young Max. [17]

2009: Los Angeles

In 2009, the musical was produced at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood, California, and ran from November 10 to December 27. [18] Christopher Lloyd had initially signed on to play the Grinch, but later withdrew and was replaced by Stefánsson. [19] John Larroquette starred as Old Max, with Kayley Stallings and Issadora Ava Tulalian as Cindy Lou Who, and James Royce as Young Max. [20]

2010–2015: North American National Tours

In 2010, a North American tour ran in the cities of Omaha, Nebraska, Houston and Dallas, Texas, Tempe, Arizona and Toronto, Ontario. Stefánsson played the Grinch, and Carly Tamer and Brooke Lynn Boyd alternated as Cindy Lou Who.

In 2011, another tour played Providence, Rhode Island, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Atlanta, Georgia, St. Louis, Missouri and San Francisco, California. Stefánsson again performed as the Grinch, with Bob Lauder as Old Max, Seth Bazacas as Young Max, Brance Cornelius as Papa Who, and Serena Brook as Mama Who and Brooke Lynn Boyd as Cindy Lou Who. In 2012, the production toured to Bloomington, Indiana, Hartford, Connecticut, Richmond, Virginia, Chicago, Illinois, and Detroit, Michigan, with Stefánsson as the Grinch. [21] [22]

In 2013, the production toured to Cincinnati, Ohio, Durham, North Carolina, Rochester and Buffalo, New York, and San Antonio, Texas, with Stefánsson as the Grinch. [21] [23] In 2014, the toured visited Springfield, Missouri, Oklahoma City and Tulsa, Oklahoma, Albuquerque, New Mexico, Salt Lake City, Utah, Spokane and Seattle, Washington, New York City, Chicago, Costa Mesa, California, and Denver Colorado. [24] The Grinch was played by Shuler Hensley. [25]

In 2015, the production toured to Worcester, Massachusetts, Detroit, Michigan, Appleton, Wisconsin, Columbus, Ohio, and Jacksonville and Orlando and Fort Lauderdale, Florida. [26] Stefánsson returned as the Grinch, with Bob Lauder as Old Max, and Genny Gagnon and Rachel Katzke as Cindy Lou Who. [27] [28]

In 2019, the production toured to Las Vegas, Nevada, Denver, and Detroit. Philip Bryan and Rachel Ling Gordon performed as the Grinch and Cindy Lou Who respectively. [29]

2018: Madison Square Garden

The musical played December 13 through December 30 at the Hulu Theater. The Grinch was played by Gavin Lee, after Stefánsson's death in August. [30]

2019: UK tour

The musical made its UK premiere on a tour from November 1, 2019 to January 5, 2020, stopping at New Wimbledon Theatre, SEC Armadillo, Glasgow, Motorpoint Arena Cardiff, Edinburgh Festival Theatre, The Alexandra, Birmingham and The Lowry, Salford.

2020: TV Special

A poorly received television adaptation titled Dr. Seuss' The Grinch Musical Live! premiered on December 9, 2020, on NBC. Matthew Morrison plays The Grinch, Denis O'Hare plays Old Max, Booboo Stewart plays Young Max and Amelia Minto plays Cindy Lou Who. [31]

Musical numbers

Music by Albert Hague, lyrics by Dr. Seuss

Casts

Character Broadway
(2006)		Broadway revival
(2007)		 US tour
(2008)		US tour
(2010)		 UK tour
(2019)		 US tour
(2019)
The Grinch Patrick Page Stefán Karl Stefánsson Edward Baker-Duly Philip Bryan
Old Max John Cullum Ed Dixon Walter Charles Bob Lauder Gregor Fisher
Young Max Rusty Ross Rusty Ross
Andrew Keenan-Bolger 		Andrew Keenan-BolgerSeth Bazacas Matt Terry
Cindy Lou WhoNicole Bocchi
Caroline London		Caroline London
Athena Ripka		Lexie DeBlasio
Maya Goldman		Carly Tamer
Brooke Lynn Boyd		Isla Gie
Sophie Woods
Eve Corbishley
Bebe Massey		Rachel Ling Gordon
Papa WhoPrice WaldmanAaron Galligan-StierleBrance CorneliusAlan Pearson
Mama Who Kaitlin Hopkins Tari Kelly Jacquelyn Piro Donovan Serena BrookHolly Dale Spencer
Grandpa Who Michael McCormick Darin DePaul Stuart Zagnit Ryan Knowles David Bardsley
Grandma WhoJan NeubergerRosemary LoarRebecca PrescottKaren Ascoe

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References

  1. ↑ "Green Menace Is Back, Just in Time for Holidays". The New York Times . November 23, 2007. Retrieved 2011-03-28.
  2. ↑ "The 'Grinch' returns to Children's Theatre Company". kare11.com. 2022-11-26. Retrieved 2023-01-13.
  3. 1 2 Gans, Andrew (2007-09-06). "Tix for Grinch — with Patrick Page — Go on Sale Sept. 6". Playbill. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2007-09-06.
  4. ↑ Monteagudo, Merrie (2022-11-22). "From the Archives: Grinching of the Globe began in 1998". San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved 2022-12-04.
  5. 1 2 "Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas! 2021". www.theoldglobe.org. Retrieved 2022-12-04.
  6. ↑ Hernandez, Ernio (October 17, 2006). "Jay Goede to Steal Christmas in San Diego as Dr. Seuss' Grinch". Playbill.com. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
  7. ↑ Hernandez, Ernio (November 9, 2003). "Who! How the Grinch Stole Christmas! Starts Seussentennial at Old Globe, Nov. 9".
  8. ↑ Hernandez, Ernio (2007-09-10). "Grinch Musical Adds New Songs for 10th Year in San Diego (and Second on Broadway)". Playbill.com. Archived from the original on 2007-09-21. Retrieved 2007-09-11.
  9. ↑ "Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas!: The Musical", BroadwayWorld.com
  10. ↑ "'The Grinch' is Highest-Grossing Show on Broadway". BroadwayWorld.com.
  11. ↑ Gans, Andrew (2007-08-27). "Page Will Be Green Again for Broadway's Grinch". Playbill.com. Retrieved 2007-08-31.
  12. ↑ Gans, Andrew (2007-08-07). "Grinch Will Play 15 Performances a Week at the St. James; Tix On Sale in September". Playbill. Archived from the original on 2007-08-20. Retrieved 2007-08-09.
  13. ↑ Viagas, Robert (2007-11-10). "On the Scene: Grinch Is First Show Affected by Strike". Playbill. Archived from the original on 2007-11-12. Retrieved 2007-11-21.
  14. ↑ Gans, Andrew (2007-11-20). "Day 11: The Strike Goes On, The Grinch Does Not". Playbill. Archived from the original on 2007-11-22. Retrieved 2007-11-21.
  15. ↑ Gans, Andrew (2007-11-21). "Update: Grinch Will Reopen at the St. James Theatre Nov. 23". Playbill. Archived from the original on 2007-11-23. Retrieved 2007-11-22.
  16. ↑ "Update: Judge Rules 'Grinch' Will Reopen Friday, Owners to Appeal?". BroadwayWorld.com. 2007-11-21. Retrieved 2007-11-22.
  17. ↑ Gans, Andrew (2008-10-06). "Karl, Charles, Keenan-Bolger and More Cast in Grinch Tour". Playbill. Archived from the original on 2008-10-09. Retrieved 2008-10-06.
  18. ↑ "How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical". Archived from the original on 2009-10-19. Retrieved 2009-08-30. broadwayla.org
  19. ↑ "Christopher Lloyd withdraws from 'Grinch' at the Pantages". Los Angeles Times. 2009-10-27. Retrieved 2022-12-04.
  20. ↑ "Christopher Lloyd Bows Out of LA's 'Grinch'; Replaced by Stefan Karl". BroadwayWorld.com.
  21. 1 2 Frank Rizzo (November 15, 2012). "Icelandic Actor Puts Chill In Musical 'Grinch' At Bushnell". Hartford Courant. Retrieved January 8, 2013.
  22. ↑ abouttheartists.com
  23. ↑ prnewswire.com
  24. ↑ "Buy Tickets | Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical : Grinchmusical.com". Archived from the original on 2014-09-25. Retrieved 2014-08-17. Grinch Musical 2014 Tour Dates
  25. ↑ "Shuler Hensley suits up for 'How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical'". am New York. December 3, 2014. Retrieved 2018-12-23.
  26. ↑ "Welcome". Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas The Musical. Retrieved 2015-12-29.
  27. ↑ "The Grinch Media Day". mediapunch.photoshelter.com. Retrieved 2015-12-29.
  28. ↑ "Theater review | 'How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical': Perfect for young at heart".
  29. ↑ "Onstage colorado". www.onstagecolorado.com. Retrieved 2021-06-21.
  30. ↑ McPhee, Ryan (2018-09-28). "SpongeBob SquarePants' Gavin Lee to Star in Madison Square Garden How the Grinch Stole Christmas!". Playbill. Retrieved 2018-12-23.
  31. ↑ "Hoorays in Who-ville as NBC Brings Classic Dr. Seuss Tale to the Stage with Holiday Special "Dr. Seuss' The Grinch Musical!" on Dec. 9". The Futon Critic . November 10, 2020.
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