The Friday 5: 5 Favorite Shows Based on Books

We talk so much these days about shows based on films. Rarely, it seems, much is discussed about shows that come from books. Some of the greatest musicals of all time are based on novels and short stories - Cabaret (Goodbye to Berlin) and Fiddler on the Roof (Tevye and His Daughters) are but two. This past season featured two - Once on This Island (My Love, My Love) and Mean Girls (Queen Bees and Wannabes). Here are 5 of my favorites (plus 3 GIANTS of Broadway history). I didn't realize until after I finished the list that all 8 are also Best Musical Tony Award winners!

The Friday 5:

5 Favorite Musicals Based on Books

THE MOTHER(S) OF ALL MUSICALS BASED ON BOOKS:

Cats: Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, Lyrics by T.S. Eliot
Based on Old Possom's Book of Practical Cats by T.S. Eliot

Les Miserables: Book by Claude-Michel Schonberg and Alain Boublil, 

Music by Claude-Michel Schonberg, Lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer

Based on the novel Les Miserables by Victor Hugo

The Phantom of the Opera: Book by Richard Stilgoe and Andrew Lloyd Webber, Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, Lyrics by Charles Hart

Based on the novel Le Fantome de L'Opera by Gaston Leroux

FAVORITE BOOK TO MUSICAL 1:

Big River: Book by William Hauptman, Music and Lyrics by Roger Miller

Based on the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

FAVORITE BOOK TO MUSICAL 2:

Fun Home: Book by Lisa Kron, Music by Jeanine Tesori, Lyrics by Lisa Kron

Based on the graphic novel Fun Home by Alison Bechdel

FAVORITE BOOK TO MUSICAL 3:

Kiss of the Spider Woman: Book by Terrence McNally, 

Music by John Kander, Lyrics by Fred Ebb

Based on the novel Kiss of the Spider Woman by Manuel Puig

FAVORITE BOOK TO MUSICAL 4: 

The Mystery of Edwin Drood: Book, Music and Lyrics by Rupert Holmes

Based on the novel The Mystery of Edwin Drood by Charles Dickens

FAVORITE BOOK TO MUSICAL 5:

Passion: Book by James Lapine, Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim

Based on the novel Fosca by Iginio Ugo Tarchetti

#1905