It debuted in 1978 with a studio recording of the songs, before premiering on stage in 1979.
An English-language studio version was also produced in 1992, with lyrics by Sir Tim Rice. Several stage revivals have been produced in France, Quebec and Germany, each with their distinctive styles.
Several of its songs have passed into mainstream Francophonepop culture, and helped original cast members Daniel Balavoine and Diane Dufresne to rise in popularity in France; it is now considered the most famous rock opera in French history.[1]
Genesis
Michel Berger was inspired by the Patty Hearst kidnapping.
In 1978, its first recording was released (in French), sub-titled Starmania, ou la passion de Johnny Rockfort selon les évangiles télévisés ("Starmania, or the Passion of Johnny Rockfort According to the Televised Gospels") with the leading roles filled by Daniel Balavoine (Johnny Rockfort), Claude Dubois (Zéro Janvier), Diane Dufresne (Stella Spotlight), Nanette Workman (Sadia), France Gall (Cristal), Eric Esteve (Ziggy) and Fabienne Thibeault (Marie-Jeanne).
In 1979 the show was given its theatrical debut in Paris, starring Balavoine, Dufresne, Gall, Dufresne and Thibeault, as well as new cast members Etienne Chicot, Gregory Ken and Rody Julienne.
Later Productions
The 1979 Paris run was followed by Canadian productions in 1980 and 1986 and French revivals in 1988 and throughout the 1990s.
In 1993, a new French production, directed by Canadian prodigy Lewis Furey, debuted in Paris at the Mogador theatre. For a few months in 1993-94, a version of Tycoon (with re-worked and expanded lyrics) alternated with the French version, using the same actors and staging.
A comeback tour, directed by Thomas Jolly, Nicolas Ghesquière[5] and Victor Le Masne (Housse de Racket), was announced in 2020 and set to premiere in France on November 11, 2021. It was postponed to November 8, 2022, because of the COVID-19 pandemic[6] The new production rose up to the high expectations of the audience.[7] It played for two seasons in Paris as well as two France/Switzerland/Belgium tours and a Quebec stretch in August 2024. Jolly, Le Masne, as well as Starmania scenographer Emmanuelle Le Favre and lighting designer Thomas Dechandon all went on to join the creative team which worked on the Paris 2024 Olympics and Paralympics Ceremonies.
Plot outline
In a nebulous future, Monopolis, the capital of the recently united Occident, is terrorized by the Black Stars, a gang headed by Johnny Rockfort. Rockfort dances to the tune of Sadia, an ambiguously-gendered student-agitator, originally from the upper crust, who calls herself a "transvestite." They meet at the Underground Café, under the amused gaze of Marie-Jeanne, a waitress who feels her job makes her robotic.
Above the café stands the Golden Tower, a 121-floor building which serves as the headquarters for Zéro Janvier, a real estate tycoon and billionaire. Janvier is running for the presidency of the Occident on a law and order, anti-immigration platform. He touts the construction of the "new atomic world" as well as the conquest of space. His opponent (who does not appear in every production) is the Gourou Marabout, a conspiracy theorist who advocates a return to nature and hosts drug-fuelled therapy sessions/orgies. The Black Stars, under Sadia's leadership, vow to take down Zéro Janvier.
Against this background, three parallel relationships play out: Marie-Jeanne's unrequited love for Ziggy, a homisexual record dealer and dreams of fame; the sensational romance of Zéro Janvier and Stella Spotlight, a depressed ex-sex symbol who has just retired from the silver screen; and the passion of Johnny Rockfort and Cristal, the true nexus of the plot.
Cristal, the host and star of a TV talent show called "Starmania," gets a call from Sadia offering her a clandestine interview with Johnny Rockfort at the Underground Café. When they meet, and depending on the version, Cristal either falls in love with Johnny at first sight and runs away with him, or gets kidnapped by him and later joins the cause. Sadia, having lost her hold over Johnny, leaves the Black Stars. Cristal becomes the face of the gang, using her knowledge of television to transmit pirate messages over the airwaves and rally public opinion to their cause.
Ziggy, having abandonned Marie-Jeanne and the underground world, DJs during Janvier's engagement party at the Naziland, a club build on top of the Golden Tower. A bitter Sadia reveals Johnny and Cristal's plan to destroy the Tower, sending Zéro Janvier's men after them.
Cristal dies, of varying causes depending on the production, usually in front of Johnny (if not in his arms). Johnny's fate also varies: he usually dies, but is sometimes emprisonned.
A triumphant Zéro Janvier is elected president of the Occident. However, his victory is marred by Stella Spotlight's (on- or off-stage) suicide, as well as, occasionally, the explosion of the Tower.
Marie-Jeanne closes the show by lamenting the state of the world, and heading off (in search of sunlight, or perhaps death.)
In the original studio and stage productions, a final song was delivered by an alien character or Johnny's spirit, pleading with humanity to renounce its sterile obsession with stardom, realize its insignificance and strive for peace.
Notable songs
French version
"Ouverture" ("Overture")
"Quand on arrive en ville" ("When we Come to Town")
"Complainte de la serveuse automate" ("Waitress Automaton's Lament")
"Le blues du businessman" ("The Businessman's Blues")
"I Would Love To Change The World (The Businessman's Blues)
"Farewell To A Sex Symbol"
"Ego Trip"
"You have to learn to live alone"
Albums (all in French and French pressings unless stated)
1978 Starmania – Original Studio Version (double LP or 1 CD, 80:35)
1979 Starmania – The Show - Complete Live Version (4 LP-box or double CD, 125:37)
1980 Starmania Made in Quebec - Studio Version (Beau-Bec, double LP, unknown duration, never reissued on CD)
1986 L'opéra rock Starmania - Live Québec Version (Audiogram, LP, 47:05, never reissued on CD)
1988 Starmania 88 - Live version (double CD, 72:02)
1989 Starmania - Remixed - Complete Live Version (double CD, 110:38)
1992 Tycoon – (in English), also released as Starmania – Version anglaise - Studio version, with Tim Rice lyrics (CD, 59:44)
1994 Starmania – Mogador 94 - Live Version (CD, 77:20)
1998 Starmania – 20th Anniversary - Complete Live Version (double CD, 125:19)
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