These days the overwhelming majority of musicals being staged are revivals or based on something (books, movies, etc.). It's not hard to understand why -- putting on a new musical is a huge undertaking and carries enormous risk. Until you perform it, you really don't know how audiences will react, which isn't the case with Phantom or Oklahoma. This risk made Lyn Gardner over at The Guardian ask whether theater reviewers should take it easy on new musicals, therefore giving...

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David Belcher at The New York Times recently reported on the trend of opera houses performing American musicals in addition to traditional opera. Not only is it a way to add additional options to a company's repertoire, but it could be the "gateway drug" that brings in a new audience and gets them hooked on opera. It seems fair to say that an opera company will put a unique spin on Oklahoma! or The Sound of Music and that could be...

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