One Minute World Arts- Jukebox Musical- Once Upon a One More Time

#Jukebox Musical is a particular kind of musical in which a majority of songs are not #original music, but pop songs that are already well-known to the public. Famous examples of Jukebox Musical include #MamaMia! and #JerseyBoys. Now, after a long delay due to the pandemic, a new piece of this genre called Once Upon a One More Time, based on 23 of #BritneySpears’ songs and a story created by #playwright Jon Hartmere on an assortment of princesses from world renowned fairy tales, is finally presented at The Shakespeare Theatre Company’s performance hall, Washington DC to the audience’s delight. With clever arrangements, the lyrics of the songs fit into the plotline nicely, and the production, directed and choreographed by the extremely talented couple Keone and Mari Madrid, has received acclaims from critics and audiences alike.

What makes Hartmere’s imaginative story so relatable is that, through a “#mysterious” book – the 1963 #feminist manifesto, The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan -  introduced to the princesses by a fairy godmother, these typically beautiful and seemingly satisfied ladies are made to question their own stories and ponder on the meanings of their “work”. That self-liberating spirit is fully embodied in Spears’ lively and powerful songs, as well as Spears’ recent emancipation from her arguably overly restrictive and lengthy conservatorship.

 

點唱機音樂劇- 《從前從前，重來一次》 (Once Upon a One More Time)

「#點唱機音樂劇」（Jukebox Musical）是音樂劇的一種特殊型類，劇中的曲目並非原創，而是匯集一些大眾早已耳熟能詳的 #流行歌曲 串組起來的；其中，著名的代表作有《#媽媽咪呀》和《#澤西男孩》等。此際，一部籌劃經年，卻因疫情作梗而延宕至今才推出的「點唱機音樂劇」式新作《從前從前，重來一次》(Once Upon a One More Time)，正在華盛頓特區 #莎士比亞劇院 的表演廳裡與觀眾見面；該作的故事由編劇喬恩‧哈梅爾(Jon Hartmere)所發想，藉由 #小甜甜布蘭妮 (Britney Spears)所演唱的23首歌，將好幾位脫胎自世界知名童話故事裡的公主給湊在一起；透過哈梅爾的巧思，每一首歌的歌詞都能絕妙地與劇情結合，引人入勝。在稟賦優異的編舞家夫妻檔基奧尼・馬德里和瑪莉・馬德里聯手指導下，這齣音樂劇贏得劇評人和觀眾們一致的喜愛，掀起一股粉絲朝聖的風潮。

哈梅爾筆下這個天馬行空的故事，之所以能夠引起觀眾的迴響，其中的關鍵要素之一，就是劇中 #神仙教母 介紹給公主們閱讀的一本「#玄書」，也就是1963年由貝蒂・傅瑞丹所撰述出版的《女性的奧秘》；這本充滿女性主義思維的著作，導引著劇中向來美麗又滿足於被男性拯救、呵護的公主們，去重新思考她們各自擁有的「#生命故事」，檢視本身在其間的種種作為。如此深具自我解放精神的音樂劇，正好可以從小甜甜布蘭妮生動淋漓的歌裡，以及現實中她奮力掙脫父親長期箝制監管的自救行動裡，獲得飽滿的能量。

 

Sources:

https://npacntt.tw/n16RbR76
https://npacntt.tw/n16Fe6Af 

Photo Credit: Matthew Murphy