Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber--certainly one of the theater's best-cast composers, writers and producers. Be it on Broadway or in his native West End, it's his name above so many other cast ones in productions as brilliant and as varied as Cats, Evita, Jesus Christ Superstar, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Phantom of the Opera, etc. ad inf. But what about his newest show, School of Rock: The Musical, beginning previews early November (opening officially on December 6) at the Shubert's Winter Garden Theatre? And can YOU, Classicalites, afford a ticket?
Sure, ALW's been a bona fide star since the '70s. But a lot of that sheen is shared with lyricist Tim Rice. If indeed you have the memory, when Cats first stalked onto the New York stage, more than a few Great White Way insiders guessed its old, practical Eliot-ness wouldn't translate. Apropos, some critics thought the Webber-Rice Janus head that had previously given us Joseph, Jesus and Evita would end not with a bang.
But instead, a whimper. No, hardly hollow at all.
Of course, as of Summer 2015, Cats is the third longest-running show in Broadway history--thee longest running from 1987-2006, when it was eclipsed by, yes, The Phantom of the Opera.
And to date, Phantom remains the longest-running musical on Broadway. Ever.
Based off of the Jack Black-led film School of Rock, School of Rock: The Musical will debut at the Winter Garden. Again, if your memory's good, you'll recall that's the former home of Cats.
So, points for consistency, at least.
With built-in popularity from the film--I mean, it basically made Miranda Cosgrove (i.e. Summer "Tinkerbell" Hathaway) and iCarly "a thing"--and the full might of the ALW machine behind it, the musical is already listed among the most expensive Broadway tickets on the secondary market.
According to TiqIQ, School of Rock tickets currently have an average price of $225.04, starting with its first preview on November 9.
Whereas the tunes in Richard Linklater's movie were mostly hard rockers, Sir Web's penned two dozen of his own kind of making. And while that remains to be seen and/or heard as a good thing per se, the musical version of Dewey Finn starting a band with the kids he's pretending to sub for at Horace Green Prep in order to win a battle of the bands contest is proving to be a pretty good bet.
Alex Brightman will star as Mr. Finn.
