Matilda Comes to Broadway

In April 2013 Matilda the musicalwill reach the streets of NY from its London home and join the crowds of other big number Broadway musicals that fill the historic theaters. I have high hopes for Matilda after watching this interview of the composer of the children’s novel turned musical, Tim Minchin, by NYT journalist Patrick Healy.

[ see video here ]

What gives me hope for this musical that will set it apart from many of its over-priced, over-set, gaudy under-thought Broadway predecessors is that the composer truly believes in the magic that is Roald Dahl.  Minchin does not attempt to make the stage spit glitter and have the dolled up actors throw can-can kicks around the stage. Instead, he composes the musical to posses the same struggle and underlying darkness of the book itself, while bringing lightness with music and humor that Dahl does with text.  “It’s about child abuse…a horrible story, to have kids thrown around by their hair, beaten, locked in cellars, and deprived of an education, and yet have such a light air to it” says Minchin.  He explains that these underlying themes are prevalent is many childhood stories, and it is the craft of the writer to bring this to people’s attention in the most light-hearted way.

Dahl (1916 – 1990) authored children’s books close to the hearts of those in the millennial generation, with works such as Charlie and the Chocolate Factor, the BFG, The Witches, and The Twits. Dahl, like the characters in Matilda, experienced a childhood filled with loneliness and struggle, as his father and sister passed away while he was still a child, and he was later sent to boarding school.  He was a rebellious child , often caned for the pranks he played on teachers and his rejection of God and religion. After serving in WWII, Dahl’s experience with his wife and daughter, Sophie (who he named the paralleled character in the BFG after), suffered health issues throughout their lives. It makes sense then that Dahl would pull upon his experiences and translate distasteful incidents into fantastical, and allegorical, stories for children to relate and escape into.

The images from the trailer to the musical exhibit deep hues of blue, black and grey within the set, and similar costuming and sets to that of the 1996 movie, directed by Danny DeVito. Currently, the musical is sold out at its London location and has won sever Olivier Awards, including Best Musical, with high hopes for its New York premier.