And here’s one for the theater nerds.
In 1988, blood pumped hot on Broadway when a musical adaptation of Stephen King’s Carrie splashed across the stage. Created and composed by Dean Pitchford, Michael Gore, and OG Carrie screenwriter Lawrence D. Cohen, the musical was big on ideas but low on white-glove appeal — after a brief run in the U.K., it closed on Broadway after just 16 previews and five regular performances. Critics had a field day ripping the show to shreds and in 1991 it found itself the centerpiece of a book about Broadway flops. Poor Carrie, a laughingstock all over again.
Over the next several decades, however, bootleg recordings of the musical made the rounds and a passionate cult sprung to life. All that persevering interest culminated in 2012 when an Off-Broadway theater brought together the original creators to rework the show. Since that production (also panned, but not nearly so brutally), the odd project’s found life on fringe and repertory stages around the world.
That’s the simple story, but it goes much deeper. Joining The Losers’ Club this week is Chris Adams, author of Out for Blood: A Cultural History of Carrie the Musical, which is out July 27 via Bloomsbury Publishing.
Per its synopsis, Out for Blood patches together “memories, archive material and contemporary reports to dive into the origins and development of this infamous show and examines how a promising entertainment product can swiftly gain a notorious reputation, what makes or breaks a Broadway show, and how even the most unlikely of musicals can find its place in the hearts of fans around the world.”
Adams chats with the Losers about the musical’s development, the urban legends clouding its history, and what separates its original and modern versions. He also discusses what spurred his love for the musical and the 10-part podcast (also called Out for Blood) that paved the way for the book itself.
Stream the episode below and be sure to check out the Losers’ original horror audio drama The Boogeyman: Mortality Rate. For further adventures, join the Club over long days and pleasant nights via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, RadioPublic, Acast, Google Podcasts, and RSS. You can also unlock hundreds of hours of content in The Barrens (Patreon).
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The post Revisiting ‘Carrie the Musical’ with Chris Adams of ‘Out for Blood’ [The Losers’ Club Podcast] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.