Survey regarding Buffy and Musicals

[tiguh_tiguh]

Hi all

I'm doing some research on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, particularly on the episode "Once More, With Feeling" (the musical episode). In particular, I'm looking for information on how the episode was received, and how it affected people, particularly if they are/were fans of musical theatre before or after seeing the episode. I've created the

Comments

[leiacat]

1. Yes, love'em. In fact, I have a particular weakness for movie musicals, on average perhaps even more so than stage ones.

2. I suppose because I grew up with it. Musicals were a pretty big movie genre where I grew up, and even regular movies often had 1-2 songs in them, frequently quite good ones. I had a lot of favorites, so when I moved I sought out similar as much as I could.

3. Piano, choir, music theory and history, dance, theater and pantomime in some mix throughout childhood. Dance now, of course.

4. Chicago. I first got my crush on it when saw a dance number on Tony Awards - not sure why it struck me as particularly memorable, but I was flipping channels rather than watching the show, and it utterly caught my attention, stopped me dead in my tracks. I think it might have been the first American musical I went out of my way to see live on stage.

5. Hair. I dutifully watched it to the end to have seen it, but if anything could be the opposite of speaking to me, that was surely it. (I might change my mind if I see it now that I'm much more Americanized than I was the first time around.)

I didn't quite get Oklahoma, either.

6. I can't think of when I wasn't. Possibly a year or two after I decided I liked cartoons, by sheer immersion.

7. Definitely a fan.

8. The night it aired, although possibly 2-3 hours after the actual broadcast time.

9. Before. And obviously still.

10. I can't say that there was much of a change. Being a fan of both, I was merely happy that one did not spoil the other in either direction.

11. It's one of my top 3 (others being Hush and Tabula Rasa). Two of these are "gimmick episodes", which I enjoyed because the gimmick was successful. The songs were integral to the plot of the episode, the episode advanced the storyline of the entire season, the best voices were showcased well, and the less good ones were reasonably successfully de-emphasized.

12. F/32

[tiguh_tiguh]

Thanks for your replies.

Hmm.. Why do you think you like movie musicals more than stage musicals?

"Musicals were a pretty big movie genre where I grew up,"
Where do you mean? Buffalo (wasn't it)? Or Belarus (...wasn't it)?

Re: Chicago: Obviously you saw the revival on the Tony's, not the original production, right? Would you have been born yet, for the original cast (I was 5, so I think you were not yet born)? :) What about the film of Chicago, did that stand up to your view of the stage play (I forget if you saw it with me or not)?

I'm curious to know more about your "Americanization," and how that might have affected your taste for musicals. Were you fairly well "Americanized" when you saw Chicago? Are musicals common, popular, around at all, in Belarus?

"Two of these are 'gimmick episodes'" - which two do you mean? I think some might say all three are gimmick episodes...

Also, do you consider yourself a geek? :)

[leiacat]

By where I grew up I meant the ex-USSR. (Belarus was not its own cultural entity when I lived in it, USSR was). And I think that's why I have a weakness for movie musicals in particular. As much as I love a good stage production, as I child I had much more exposure to musical movies than musical theatre.

Yes, what I saw of Chicago was the revival. Mid to late 90s. When I saw the movie, my reaction was "Thank god they didn't completely mess it up thank you thank you thank you". (I don't recall if I saw it with you or on my own). The movie seemed to me to have a rather different feel from what I loved about the stage show, but I expected that, and was therefore pleased that the movie's style was not a parody, stood up for itself, and felt like it worked for the story and the music both. My favorite movie-specific part was the courtroom scene with the tapdance.

By "gimmick episodes" I meant that these weren't just regular television episodes, but had a "twist" in how the episodes were presented, just because they could - a musical and a silent ep.

Yes, I do identify as a geek.

The Americanization thing is a little involved, and might take me a while to verbalize, so I will write more later.

[tiguh_tiguh]

So you had easy access to movie musicals in the (ex-)USSR? Cool!