Titles M
Mack & Mabel
"...a musical with a book by Michael Stewart and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. The plot involves the tumultuous romantic relationship between Hollywood director Mack Sennett and Mabel Normand (transformed from an artist's model to a waitress from Flatbush, Brooklyn for the musical), who became one of his biggest stars. In a series of flashbacks, Sennett relates the glory days of Keystone Studios from 1911, when he discovered Normand and cast her in dozens of his early 'two-reelers', through his creation of Sennett's Bathing Beauties and the Keystone Cops to Mabel's death from tuberculosis in 1930."
The Mad Show
"...an Off-Broadway musical revue based on Mad Magazine. The music is by Mary Rodgers, the book by Larry Siegel and Stan Hart. The show's various lyricists include Siegel, Marshall Barer, Steven Vinaver, and Stephen Sondheim."
Magdalena (1988 Studio Cast)
"...a musical with music by Heitor Villa-Lobos, original book by Frederick Hazlitt Brennan and Homer Curran, with subsequent lyrics and musical adaptations by Robert Wright and George Forrest."
Maggie Flynn
"...a musical with a book by Hugo Peretti, Luigi Creatore, and George David Weiss (in collaboration with Morton DaCosta) and music and lyrics by Peretti, Creatore, and Weiss. Based on an idea by John Flaxman, it was inspired by a true story set in the New York Draft Riots of 1863..."
Make a Wish
"...a musical with a book by Preston Sturges and Abe Burrows, who was not credited, and music and lyrics by Hugh Martin. Based on Sturges' screenplay for the 1935 film The Good Fairy, which in turn is based on the play of the same name by Ferenc Molnár as translated by Jane Hinton, the musical focuses on Janette, who experiences various adventures, including love with young artist Paul Dumont, when she abandons her tour group during a visit to Paris.
Mame
"...a musical with the book by Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. it is based on the 1955 novel Auntie Mame by Patrick Dennis and a 1956 Broadway play, by Lawrence and Lee, that had starred Rosalind Russell. Set in New York and spanning the Great Depression and World War II, it focuses on eccentric bohemian, Mame Dennis, whose famous motto is 'Life is a banquet and most poor suckers are starving to death.' Her fabulous life with her wealthy friends is interrupted when the young son of her late brother arrives to live with her. They cope with the Depression in a series of adventures."
Mamma Mia!
"...a stage musical written by British playwright Catherine Johnson, based on the songs of ABBA, composed by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, former members of the band. Although the title of the musical is taken from the group's 1975 chart-topper 'Mamma Mia', the plot is fictional, not biographical."
Man of La Mancha (OBC) & (1990 Studio Cast) & (2000 Studio Cast)
"...a musical with a book by Dale Wasserman, lyrics by Joe Darion and music by Mitch Leigh. It is adapted from Wasserman's non-musical 1959 teleplay I, Don Quixote, which was in turn inspired by Miguel de Cervantes's seventeenth century masterpiece Don Quixote. It tells the story of the mad' knight, Don Quixote, as a play within a play, performed by Cervantes and his fellow prisoners as he awaits a hearing with the Spanish Inquisition."
The Man of No Importance
"...a musical with music by Stephen Flaherty, lyrics by Lynn Ahrens and a book by Terrence McNally, based on the 1994 Albert Finney film, A Man of No Importance. It tells the story of an amateur theatre group in Dublin and their leader, who is determined to stage a version of Salome at his church, despite the objections of church authorities."
Marie Christine
"...a musical written by Michael John LaChiusa. It opened on Broadway in 1999. Set in 1890s New Orleans and then 5 years later in Chicago; the story is loosely based on the Greek play Medea, and uses elements of voodoo rituals and practices. The title character was based in part on the historical figure of Marie Laveau – specifically, her daughter, who took the same name – and the myths surrounding them."
Mary Poppins (London Cast)
"...a musical based on the similarly titled series of children's books by P. L. Travers and the Disney 1964 film. The musical features the film's music and lyrics by the Academy Award winning Sherman Brothers, along with additional music and lyrics by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe. The book was written by Julian FellowesThe stage musical is a fusion of various elements from the film and the books."
Matilda (OBC) & (London Original Cast)
"...based on the children's novel of the same name by Roald Dahl. It was written by Dennis Kelly, with music and lyrics by Tim Minchin. The musical's narrative centres on Matilda, a precocious 5-year-old girl who loves reading, overcomes obstacles caused by her family and school, and helps her teacher to reclaim her life."
Me and Juliet
"...a musical comedy by Richard Rodgers (music) and Oscar Hammerstein II (lyrics and book) and their sixth stage collaboration. The work tells a story of romance backstage at a long-running musical: assistant stage manager Larry woos chorus girl Jeanie behind the back of her electrician boyfriend."
Me and My Girl
"...a musical with book and lyrics by Douglas Furber and L. Arthur Rose and music by Noel Gay. It takes place in the late 1930s in Hampshire, Mayfair, and Lambeth. The musical had a successful original run on the West End in 1937 and very successful revivals in both London and New York in the 1980s."
Meet Me in St. Louis
"...a musical based on the 1944 film of the same title, about a family living in St. Louis, Missouri on the eve of the 1904 World's Fair. The musical varied from the film with additional songs and some additional character development; the focus is not primarily on the character of Esther, as in the film. The musical ran on Broadway in 1989."
Memphis
"...a musical by David Bryan (music and lyrics) and Joe DiPietro (lyrics and book). It is loosely based on Memphis disc jockey Dewey Phillips, one of the first white DJs to play black music in the 1950s."
Merrily We Roll Along (OBC) & (1997 Studio Cast)
"...a musical with a book by George Furth and lyrics and music by Stephen Sondheim. It is based on the 1934 play of the same name by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart. Furth and Sondheim retained the basic structure and overall theme of the play but updated it to encompass the period from 1957 to 1976. The story revolves around Franklin Shepard who, having once been a talented composer of Broadway musicals, has now abandoned his friends and his songwriting career to become a producer of Hollywood flicks. Like the play, the musical begins at the height of his Hollywood fame and moves backwards in time, showing snapshots of the most important moments in Frank's life that shaped the man that he is today."
Les Misérables (Original London Cast)
"...a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg, based on the French novel Les Misérables by Victor Hugo. The music was composed by Schönberg, and the lyrics were written by Alain Boublil and Jean-Marc Natel, with an English-language libretto by Herbert Kretzmer. Set in early 19th-century France, the plot follows the stories of many characters as they struggle for redemption and revolution. An ensemble that includes prostitutes, student revolutionaries, factory workers, and others join the lead characters."
Milk and Honey
"...a musical with a book by Don Appell and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. The story centers on a busload of lonely American widows hoping to catch husbands while touring Israel and is set against the background of the country's fight for recognition as an independent nation. It was Herman's first Broadway book musical following a succession of off-Broadway revues."
Miss Liberty
"...a musical with a book by Robert E. Sherwood and music and lyrics by Irving Berlin. It is based on the sculpting of the Statue of Liberty in 1886. The score includes the song 'Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor,' a musical setting of the poem 'The New Colossus' by Emma Lazarus that is on the base of the monument."
Miss Saigon (London Cast)
"...musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil, with lyrics by Boublil and Richard Maltby, Jr.. It is based on Giacomo Puccini's opera Madame Butterfly, and similarly tells the tragic tale of a doomed romance involving an Asian woman abandoned by her American lover. The setting of the plot is relocated to the 1970s Saigon during the Vietnam War, and Madame Butterfly's American Lieutenant and Japanese geisha coupling is replaced by a romance between an American GI and a Vietnamese bar girl."
Mlle. Modiste
"..is an operetta in two acts composed by Victor Herbert with a libretto by Henry Blossom. It concerns hat shop girl Fifi, who longs to be an opera singer, but who is such a good hat seller that her employer, Mme. Cecil, discourages her in her ambitions and exploits her commercial talents."
The Most Happy Fella (OBC) & (1992 Broadway Revival)
"...a musical with a book, music, and lyrics by Frank Loesser. The story, about a romance between an older man and younger woman, is based on the play They Knew What They Wanted by Sidney Howard."
Motown: The Musical
"...a jukebox musical. The story revolves around the early days of Motown and Berry Gordy's romance with Diana Ross. The musical has a book by Berry Gordy, based on his 1994 autobiography, To Be Loved: The Music, the Magic, the Memories of Motown.The music and lyrics are from the Motown catalog..."
Movin' Out
"...a jukebox musical featuring the songs of Billy Joel. Conceived by Twyla Tharp, the musical tells the story of a generation of American youth growing up on Long Island during the 1960s and their experiences with the Vietnam War."
Mr. President
"...a musical with a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse and lyrics and music by Irving Berlin. It focuses on U.S. President Stephen Decatur Henderson, who loses his bid for re-election following a disastrous trip to the Soviet Union. Bored with life as a civilian, he decides to return to political life as a Senator."
Music in the Air (1951 Broadway Revival)
"...a musical written by Oscar Hammerstein II (lyrics and book) and Jerome Kern (music). The musical premiered on Broadway in 1932, and followed on the team's success with the musical Show Boat from 1927."
The Music Man (OBC) & (2000 Broadway Revival)
"...a musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and leader and sells band instruments and uniforms to naive townsfolk before skipping town with the cash. In River City, Iowa, prim librarian and piano teacher Marian Paroo sees through him, but when Hill helps her younger brother overcome his fear of social interactions due to his lisp, Marian begins to fall in love with Harold. Harold, in turn falling for Marian, risks being caught to win her."
The Musical of Musicals
"...a musical by Joanne Bogart and Eric Rockwell. It is structured into five acts, each of which is a short musical parodying (and paying homage to) the style of a related group of American or British musical theatre composers, all dealing with roughly the same classic melodrama plot: 'I can't pay the rent!'"
My Fair Lady (OBC) & (1987 Studio Cast) & (1998 Studio Recording) & (2018 Broadway Revival)
"...a musical based upon George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion and with book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe. The story concerns Eliza Doolittle, a Cockney flower girl who takes speech lessons from professor Henry Higgins, a phoneticist, in order that she may pass as a proper lady."
My Favorite Year
"...a musical with a book by Joseph Dougherty, music by Stephen Flaherty, and lyrics by Lynn Ahrens. It is based on the film of the same name."
My One and Only
"...a musical with a book by Peter Stone and Timothy S. Mayer and music and lyrics by George and Ira Gershwin. Written to incorporate classic Gershwin tunes from Funny Face and other popular shows into one evening of entertainment, the plot, set in 1927 America, revolves around Capt. Billy Buck Chandler, a barnstorming aviator, and Edith Herbert, an ex-English Channel swimmer and the star of Prince Nicolai Erraclyovitch Tchatchavadze's International Aquacade."
The Mystery of Edwin Drood
"...a musical based on the unfinished Charles Dickens novel The Mystery of Edwin Drood. It is written by Rupert Holmes, and was the first Broadway musical with multiple endings (determined by audience vote)."
(THE MUSIC MAN - Robert Preston & Barbara Cook)
