Like the Phantom of the Opera, I'd like to bring you to the seat of sweet music's throne, to this kingdom where all must pay homage to music.
I've always enjoyed musicals, but only recently have I fallen in love with the genre as a whole. This origin of Love comes from their universality. The themes in them run the gamut of human experience, I think. Though there's usually a girl. For music man, Harold Hill, this is the sadder but wiser girl, Marian the Librarian. One great thing is that these discoveries of love can happen anywhere in a musical, perhaps resulting in an Elephant Love Medley. Some characters can declare their love by telling another "I'm hopelessly devoted to you." But others, like Joanne and Mark, can only commiserate while doing the Tango: Maureen. Occasionally a character will need to forget about the boy while others have to accept that their fates are written in the stars.
Another widespread theme that adds to their universality is Dreams. Sometimes literally, in the case of Joseph's Dream but more often in a figurative sense. I'm sure we can all relate to Tevye's pondering wish: if he were a rich man. Though maybe we can't relate to wanting turkeys and geese in the yard for all the town to see and hear. Pure imagination is required to dream about going over the rainbow but once you get there, you'll be rewarded with such fantastic sights and sounds that you won't be able to stop asking yourself, "What's this?"
The themes of a musical can go through the time warp and still come out as strong and as pertinent as the day it was written. Some characters may find themselves wondering about good and evil and the Nature of Things, repeatedly, unsure of an answer. Characters, like Elphaba may be able to conclude that no good deed goes unpunished so being wicked is really the only option. Others may find solace in the darkness, comforted by the tools of their trade and their friends.
I wish it would have been feasible to copy the soundtracks for all the musicals represented here. Hopefully this bohemian rhapsody will suffice, though. Even if it piques your curiosity about musicals in just a small way.
