Blogmas Day 8 // For the love of musicals
I am, unashamedly, a huge lover of musicals. I love listening to the soundtracks, I watch them when I'm off sick and I sing them all the time. Also, don't forget the many obscure references. Today, I wanted to run you through some of my absolute favourite musicals and also the ones that I can't wait to listen to and have lined up on Spotify to listen to when I next get the chance!
First up is a classic. Actually, when it comes to musicals, I think the majority are classics but this one is definitely one of the founding fathers of musicals, in my opinion anyway. Of course, the musical I'm talking about is the Sound of Music. From Do-Re-Mi to the Hills are Alive, this is the best musical to start with as it's so accessible and fun.The setting of Nazi Austria adds an extra element to this otherwise cheery musical, and whilst it may not be accurate to the real life people, it certainly provides entertainment that is perfect for the whole movie. Also, Julie Andrews, man. She's a babe. I think one of the main reasons I love this is because it reminds me of my grandparents as I often watched it on VHS at their house and sang it with my Nanna as we were getting ready. I'm constantly referencing this in my day-to-day life and as this one's quite popular, it's nice for people to get those references!
The next musical, however, is a little less well-known in the UK so my references are a little obscure. The musical in question is Hamilton, penned by Lin-Manuel Miranda. Obviously, this is by no means an underground musical, but it hasn't made the same global impact it has in the US where the history is more relevant to them. However, just because I'm not American doesn't mean I don't want to learn about what happened during the fight for independence. The songs are emotional and clever and witty so you'll find yourself crying and laughing throughout. I'm incredibly excited for it to hit the West End in 2017 and I'll be first in line for tickets!
One of my favourite musicals is Les Miserables. I may not know all the words, but it holds a very special place in my heart due to all the links it has to my friends. Our groupchat nicknames used to be Jean Valjean, Javert and Thernadier before they were updated to King Lear characters (we're an educated bunch) and we often got to watch it together to celebrate our success in mock exams or jsut because we can. Similarly, another musical that holds the same appeal is Mamma Mia which we watched in the rain in a field because an outdoor cinema seemed like a great idea at the time. These two will always be firm favourites as they remind me of my favourite people.
So that's some of my faves, but what are some of the ones I haven't listened to yet?
The top three that I want to listen to and know the stories to are In the Heights, Rent and Cats. I feel a little ashamed that I haven't listened to the whole of Rent yet as that's one of the quintessential musicals, I feel in modern day life. In the Heights is Miranda's first musical and I don't feel I can call myself a real fan until I've listened to all of his work. There's still plenty more that I haven't hear yet, and I can't wait to discover more musical stories as I continue with this journey of musicals.
What's your favourite musical?
Happy reading,
Amelia x
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