When it comes to the theatre world, no one did it like Shakespeare, so much so that the Bard’s influence has spread a lot further than just in the theatre world, so much so that there are multiple modern film adaptations of famous Shakespeare’s works. However, when it comes to musicals, Shakespeare is probably not the first name that comes to mind. But it might be a surprise for many to find out that there are actually multiple musicals inspired by some of Shakespeare’s most famous plays. After all, it is often said that Shakespeare’s works are the ultimate inspiration in theatre.
West Side Story
The first one that comes to mind is, of course, West Side Story. As fans of the musicals would know, the musical is inspired by one of Shakespeare’s most famous tragedies, Romeo and Juliet but with an entirely new setting. Instead of fair Verona, West Side Story is set in the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City in the mid-1950s. The two lovers are still the centre of the musical, except this time they are called Tony and Maria, as are their rival gangs, the Sharks and the Jets, as the musical explores the themes of racism, poverty, and intolerance.
The Lion King
On the contrary, The Lion King is probably not a musical we would normally associate with any of Shakespeare’s plays. After all, you would not imagine that the story of a young lion in the African Savanna would have much to do with the English playwriter, But looking at the plot of The Lion King we can actually see multiple parallels with the play it was loosely based on. In The Lion King, Simba is a young heir to the kingdom whose father gets killed as his uncle attempts to usurp his throne. Sounds familiar? That is because that is the very core of the plot of Hamlet.
The Boys from Syracuse
The Boys from Syracuse might be less famous than the previously mentioned musicals as, unlike The Lion King or West Side Story, it has not been performed as recently, with its last performance yet in 2012 in Singapore. However, perhaps surprisingly, it is the first Broadway musical to be based on a Shakespeare play when it premiered on Broadway in 1939. This time, it is a comedy rather than a tragedy and, more specifically, The Comedy of Errors from which the musical took his inspiration in terms of the setting and characters, with a 1930s Broadway twist.
& Juliet
Much like West Side Story, & Juliet is also based on one of the first Shakespeare plays, Romeo and Juliet, as the name of the musical suggests. In this rendition of the tragedy, Juliet does not die after Romeo’s suicide, which interestingly enough also happens to their counterparts in West Side Story. In & Juliet, the musical begins where the original play ends, but this time, Juliet’s story is just about to start, all accompanied by the music of the Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears, and Katy Perry, to mention just a few of the notable names on the tracklist.
All Shook Up
But & Juliet is not the only jukebox musical inspired by a Shakespeare play: in fact, before & Juliet, All Shook Up premiered on Broadway in 2005. This time, the soundtrack is made up of all Elvis Presley hits, as the tagline of the musical promptly suggests. All Shook Up is a story of mistaken identities, love, and twins who get separated throughout the story, of course, accompanied by recognizable songs. If you know your Shakespeare, you have probably already guessed it: All Shook Up is based on one of the Bard’s most famous comedies, Twelfth Night.
words by Clotilde Chinnici
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