Nightmare Alley -- the musical

[Steve-O]

http://www.ocregister.com/entertainment/book-244285-register-movie.html

'Nightmare Alley' turns famous film noir into musical
By PAUL HODGINS
THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

"Nightmare Alley" holds a special place in the hearts of film noir fans.

Based on a novel by William Lindsay Gresham about the seedy world of the travelling carnival, the dark-hearted 1947 movie was daring even within its bleak genre. It starred Hollywood superstar Tyrone Power, who wanted to play the sleazy lead role to break out of his leading-man straitjacket. His portrayal of the rise and fall of Stanton Carlisle, a slick con man who rises from carnival barker to celebrated mentalist before his evil ways destroy him, remained one of the actor's proudest achievements.

Composer/producer Jonathan Brielle ("Foxfire") has been working on a musical adaptation of the story for more than a decade, but it wasn't until Geffen Playhouse producing director Gil Cates got interested that the project finally came to fruition.

"Nightmare Alley" makes its world premiere next week at the Geffen Playhouse.

[noirguru]

Great just what we need! A musical based on on a down on his luck carnie geek!! I, guess they hope for another Sweeney Todd! What's next a musical-comedy version of Tod Browning's Freaks!!

[Harry Fabian]

Very strange. The interviewer didn't even ask WHY they wanted to make a musical out of this film.

[Steve-O]

The book is very dark. There's a great article in King of the Bs about the film... how it was considered unfilmable and how Powell got roped into making it...

The books is a good read... as is the graphic novel that came out a while back based on it. Some frightening stuff. The movie (http://www.noiroftheweek.com/2005/05/nightmare-alley-1947.html) is fantastic despite it not being true to the book.

[JCharles]

I just purchased a new edition of the book with an excellent introduction by Nick Tosches. Interestingly enough, he states that all editions of Nightmare Alley subsequent to the first were heavily censored and corrupted. I've had a vintage Signet paperback edition for awhile and that's the version I've read. So I'm gonna check out this new one and see how unexpurgated it is!

It certainly never crossed my mind that anyone would think of making a musical based on this very dark and downbeat tale.

[Davidmk]

Very strange to make it into a musical ...

[magus]

I wonder how this one ended up going - turning Nightmare Alley into a musical seems like something straight out of The Producers.

[Arthur Bannister]

I guess they hope for another Sweeney Todd!
Well, they did make a musical out of Sunset Boulevard (an awful one, granted), but even that isn't as grim as Nightmare Alley. Could anything be more downbeat? I think only DETOUR: THE MUSICAL! could even begin to equal it.