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Following on from my recent articles about stage adaptations, I thought I would go in a more unusual direction and list a few books I think could make great plays and/or musicals…
1. The Gustav Sonata by Rose Tremain
The beautiful tale of two young boys growing up in 1950s Switzerland also has classical music at its core, meaning it would lend itself perfectly to a play with an orchestral score. Due to its overarching themes of anti-Semitism and the way that the Holocaust features, it would obviously need to be treated with the utmost sensitivity, but I believe that it could be turned into a highly emotive piece with the right care and respect.
2. Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishaguro
This is another tearjerker which might be seen as an odd choice by some, but Kathy’s narration and the way in which it changes over time really reminds me of the Emcee in Cabaret. Plus, the bonds between the main characters, the narrative structure and the overall tragedy could make this a highly effective piece of theatre, as a play or a musical.
3. The Great Gatsby
This classic book has already been turned into a play and an opera, but I believe it could work very well as a straight musical. This is due to it’s jazz-age setting giving it a perfect musical theme and the concept of dreams, in this case more specifically the American dream, already being a well-known theme in various musicals.
4. The Perks of Being a Wallflower
There are a lot of people who’ve suggested this one and I think it could work really well as a rock musical in the style of, for example, Spring Awakening. Or, as the book kind of had it’s own soundtrack anyway, you could very easily make this a jukebox musical, with the 90s classics the characters love so much being intertwined with their lives.
Related: Movie Musical Adaptations That Need to Happen: https://leeinthelights.wordpress.com/2018/07/03/movie-musical-adaptations-that-need-to-happen-now/
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