For decades, British stage musicals struggled to compete against the
dazzling Broadway productions that came roaring in from across the pond.
But that tide was turned at last in 1978, when Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd
Webber's production of Evita brought the West End back into contention
with Broadway. It was just the first of several blockbuster productions
that helped Britain dominate musical theater all over the world. In this
revealing behind-the-scenes narrative, journalist and author Robert
Sellers gives a definitive account of how Evita, Cats, Starlight
Express, Les Misérables, Phantom of the Opera, Chess, and Miss Saigon
changed the business of musical theater in the 1980s. These mega
productions of the were larger than life, colorful, and spectacular.
Sellers collects insightful, personal stories from cast members, set
designers, musical supervisors, dancers, lighting designers, production
managers, singers, and choreographers from the shows that finally put
Broadway on its back foot. He also describes the backstage drama,
production nightmares, and financial woes that threatened to derail the
shows at multiple points. Whatever obstacles they faced, though, these
productions swept the world and transformed the face of musical theater
in ways that still resound today.
