While Broadway these days often seems to be stuck in a rut, the Off-Broadway scene has given birth to some new works that are injecting the scene with new energy. These brainy, youthful, exuberant musicals are all based on books that, at first glance, would seem to be very unlikely subjects for a hit show, yet that's ultimately part of the thrill when they manage to succeed so well. Together, they are helping to define a new American musical theater for the 21st Century.
Hamilton (check out the Hamilton Original Broadway Cast Recording) is the latest show by Lin-Manuel Miranda (In the Heights) and tells the story of one of the more neglected founding fathers, Alexander Hamilton, based on the biography Alexander Hamilton by the Pulitzer-winning Ron Chernow. With hip-hop elements to the score, a radically colorblind approach to casting, bold parallels to modern-day politics and a performance energy reminiscent of Hair, it's currently taking Broadway by storm.
Fun Home, winner of the 2015 Tony for Best Musical, is based on Alison Bechdel's autobiographical Fun Home, a graphic novel about her adolescent struggle to accept her sexual orientation while also coming to terms with her father's struggles with his own orientation.
Spring Awakening is an alternative rock musical (music by Duncan Sheik) based on a nineteenth century play Spring Awakening by German playwright Frank Wedekind. A group of teenage students struggle to come to terms with a repressive world in which adults have made the rules, which don't seem to work well for anyone.
Looking for more great modern musicals? These shows weren't based on books but they share the same youthful energy and intelligence as the group above: Passing Strange, Next to Normal, The Last Five Years and Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson.
And find more cast recordings in our online catalog.
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