A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
- Stacy Collins
- Jun 14, 2021
- 1 min read
Elevator Pitch:
"Inspired by the farces of the ancient Roman playwright Plautus (251–183 BC), specifically Pseudolus, Miles Gloriosus, and Mostellaria, the musical tells the bawdy story of a slave named Pseudolus and his attempts to win his freedom by helping his young master woo the girl next door." (Wikipedia )
Links:
Script (sorry for rotation, message me if you want the file):
This is one of those musicals that feels like an opera to me. It is a little dated at this point, but that's to be expected. It's a shame I couldn't get a recording of the stage show for this one, because I do remember from the Stratford production I saw years ago that this was a very fun show to watch. The farce-like staging lends a lot to the ability to follow all the absurdity that happens as well and just reading the synopsis or script and listening to the music limits the experience. I think the music is not necessarily Stephen Sondheim's most interesting work, but honestly he's a genius so it's still technically perfect, in my opinion.