I managed to catch a preview of new Broadway musical The Lost Boys, based on the 1987 vampire movie of the same name.
I wasn’t going to review it, mainly because this website isn’t called Last Musical Outpost. But inspiration struck following a recent confession article. Outposter DwC, author of our Masterpiece Theatre series, loved The Lost Boys as a child but hates it now. He’s gone too far this time. James D. Watkins and I are still massive fans.
Outposter slone13 pointed out that Joel Schumacher, a gay man, originally wanted Corey Haim’s character, Sam, to be gay. Here is what he wrote:
…the studio said no, so he inserted a number of hints that he was, but never comes right out and says it. He’s got a poster of Rob Lowe on his closet door, he rides a pink bike, his grandfather gives him a stuffed beaver that he’s terrified of, and we see him taking a bubble bath and lip-synching the line “I ain’t got a man.”
I don’t know how much of that was intentional, but it fits. The only gay subtext I picked up on were Sam’s flamboyant dress sense and the Rob Lowe poster (although to be fair, he also has a Demi Moore poster). If the beaver reference was intentional then it’s genius.
Anyway, it got me thinking about the differences between the movie and the Broadway musical. The changes are relatively numerous but have a minor effect on the overall experience. Some changes work well, some don’t, and some may be considered a missed opportunity.
Eugene
Firstly, it’s safe to say that the theatre world picked up the gay subtext surrounding Sam’s sexuality and ran with it. I know, I’m as surprised as you.
Sam is clearly meant to be gay in the show. He’s still young, so they don’t go too far with it. They just have other characters occasionally allude to it in a way that suggests that they know but Sam doesn’t yet.
More significantly, Sam is more nerdy in the show. He wears long socks with shorts and sounds like Eugene from Grease. He is closer to Corey Haim’s character in Lucas than The Lost Boys.
Grandpa is absent from the stage show. I felt that this was a missed opportunity for some comic relief. There’s no Nanook either (the husky dog from the movie), which makes sense.
Other than that, the plot is the same. Recently divorced Lucy Emerson and her sons, Sam and older brother Michael, relocate from Phoenix, Arizona, to Santa Carla, California, after Lucy inherits her late father’s house.
The trouble is that Santa Carla is the murder capital of the world, thanks to a gang of youthful, leather-wearing vampires.
Michael meets Star, a young woman and ‘half’ vampire (she hasn’t yet made her first kill). Michael is lured into the gang by Star and its charismatic leader, David.
Kiefer Sutherland played David in the movie. Ali Louis Bourzgui takes on the role in the musical and performs brilliantly in this key role. In fact, the cast are all excellent.
The Frog…brothers?
Sam teams up with comic book store owners and part-time vampire hunters The Frog Brothers to help Michael with his vampire problem. One of the Frog brothers has been race and gender swapped from the movie. They still call themselves The Frog Brothers despite not being related, and the show turns it into a running joke. It’s a needless change but doesn’t ruin anything.
The vampires are no longer bikers, which makes sense given the limitations of the stage. Instead, they are a rock band who perform at the Santa Carla boardwalk. It’s an inspired change and obviously a more natural fit for a musical.
Unfortunately, the butterfly effect associated with this innocuous change leads to a world where this legend doesn’t get a look in:
The musical does briefly feature an oiled up, saxophone-playing barbarian muscle man, but it’s little more than an easter egg. It got a good laugh from the audience, but surely the fans would have been better served with a rendition of I Still Believe. It would have blown the roof off.
Which leads to my next complaint: the musical features around 20 original songs and yet doesn’t use any of the songs from the movie.
Don’t get me wrong: the new songs are mostly strong and help tell the story. Some are rock numbers. Others gave me The Greatest Showman vibes. I can’t really explain any more than that. I’m not a music critic. Writing about music is like dancing about architecture, so here’s a sample:
But as good as the new songs are, The Lost Boys has one of the best movie soundtracks of all time. How do you create a musical version and leave out Cry Little Sister? Unless it’s a rights issue beyond their control, it has to be considered a mistake.
Overall
The stage makes economical use of the space, with a multi-level set-up that incorporates the Emerson house, the Santa Carla boardwalk, the vampires’ lair and other key locations. The height of the set allows for some impressive flying stunts.
The overall themes of family and belonging are retained.
Overall, despite some odd changes and the absence of music from the movie, The Lost Boys is a strong musical that stands on its own feet with an impressive cast and rousing songs.
I managed to bag a sweet T-shirt, plus they served The Lost Boys themed cocktails in souvenir cups.
The Lost Boys musical is open now on Broadway at the Palace Theatre, New York City.
