MusicalTalk - The UK's Independent Musical Theatre Podcast

MusicalTalk continues its exploration of the many and varied ways that war and conflict can be portrayed in the world of musical theatre.  This week, Thos revisits a remarkable piece of verbatim musical theatre (itself a rare and unusual form) created to mark the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War, which explored 100 years of the British involvement in battle through the musicalisation of real testimony from actual participants.  And as the video of the show remains viewable on YouTube, it's a musical you can still watch as well as hear all about.

Join Thos as he continues his look at the amazingly varied way that musical theatre has approached war and its consequences. This week he revisits Enigma, a show about the American experience of wartime code-breaking and the real life (and death) consequences of doing it.  With songs and music from the piece, hear composer, Hedda Rustad Carlsen and Thos discuss this all female written and acted show which throws a light on a long overlooked area of American wartime history. An enigma no more!

One of the many paradoxes of war is that it often generates a surprisingly rich cultural output and when musical theatre decides to tackle the subject, the results can be rewarding - and varied!  Just look at Blitz, Oh What A Lovely War and Bedknobs and  Broomsticks to see three utterly different ways of tackling conflict and death in a musical.  And it doesn't stop there! So join Thos as he sits down with the three people behind the touching but raw story of Alfie, the boy who went to war - and find out why this grounded musical drama was as good as it was in an episode that answers the old question: What's it all about, Alfie?

On this week's episode of MusicalTalk, Nick and Robert dive into a trio of very different theatrical experiences!
Robert shares his thoughts on London's lagest mega-hit musical: Paddington.    
We revisit the gloriously irreverent Avenue Q, discussing its enduring appeal, razor-sharp humour and whether its once-shocking material lands differently with modern audiences. 
We also explore the hilarious and affectionate documentary spoof Original Cast Album: Co-Op — a loving parody inspired by the legendary recording sessions of Company.

Colm and Thos are back to discuss two more diverse musical theatre gems from Colm's recent visit to Broadway: Ragtime and Maybe Happy Ending - one musical looking back - and one looking forward. They also discuss changing attitudes to taste and tastelessness in musicals - including the Doctor Crippen musical, Belle, and, perhaps surprisingly to a modern eye, the Titanic story itself - as well as more modern musical parodies like Titanique.  And is what was right with Ragtime in the 1990s now its main weakness in the 2020s?  All this and more in a jam packed in-depth episode (Warning: contains spoilers for Maybe Happy Ending)