Theatre History Overview - Part 106 - Movicals

A movical is a stage musical based on a movie. Many times the movie was already a musical, but that is not a requirement of the movie for it to become a movical. The only requirement is that it ends up as a musical on the stage. The term "movical" wasn't coined until 2002. However, movicals have existed for a long time before the term was coined.

Rick of Rick on Theatre wrongly states that the trend of movie to stage musical adaptations started in 1980. While they may have become more popular in the 1980s, the now-termed movicals started much earlier, though it is uncertain when the first movical took place.

Rick also quotes Steven Suskin, who seems to be incorrect in assuming that the first movical was 1953's Hazel Flagg.It is guessed that the first movical may have been 1944's Sadie Thompson. The stage musical was based upon the 1932 film Rain. The next movical may have been 1949's Regina based on the 1941 film The Little Foxes Obviously movicals continued throughout the years. Examples are 1966's Promises, Promises, 1973's A Little Night Music, and 1983's La Cage aux Folles.

While it is not completely certain why the term movical was created, it may have been because of the constnat creation of musicals based off of Disney films. Just a few that exist are The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and The Lion King. Obviously, movicals are not only produced by Disney because they started earlier and there are still other movicals. Some recent movicals are Heathers and Mean Girls.

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