| Carrie | |
|---|---|
| The Musical | |
&sq=&lang=&file=File:Carrie_the_Musical_Poster.jpg) Official poster for the original Stratford-upon-Avon production. | |
| Music | Michael Gore |
| Lyrics | Dean Pitchford |
| Book | Lawrence D. Cohen |
| Basis | Carrie by Stephen King |
| Premiere | February 13, 1988: Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon |
| Productions | 1988 Stratford-upon-Avon (tryout) 1988 Broadway |
Carrie (also known as Carrie: The Musical) is a musical with a book by Lawrence D. Cohen, lyrics by Dean Pitchford, and music by Michael Gore. It is based on Stephen King's horror novel of the same name, and integrates elements from the 1976 film adaptation.
The musical focuses on Carrie White, an awkward teenage girl with telekinetic powers, whose lonely life is dominated by her oppressive religious fanatic mother, Margaret. When she is humiliated by her classmates at the high school prom, she unleashes chaos on everyone and everything in her path out of vengeance.
Co-produced with the Royal Shakespeare Company, with direction by Terry Hands and choreography by Debbie Allen, the original production of Carrie premiered on Broadway at the Virginia Theatre in April 1988, after completing pre-Broadway tryouts in the United Kingdom at Stratford-upon-Avon's Royal Shakespeare Theatre in February and March of that year. Its original stars included Linzi Hateley as the title character, Sally Ann Triplett as Sue Snell, Charlotte d'Amboise as Chris Hargensen, Gene Anthony Ray as Billy Nolan, and Darlene Love as Miss Gardner. Barbara Cook played Margaret during the tryouts, but was replaced by Betty Buckley for the Broadway run following Cook's resignation after a technical accident.
The show received mostly negative reviews and closed after 16 previews and five regular performances in Broadway. With a budget of $8 million, it is considered one of the most notable and expensive failures in Broadway theatre history. Its reputation, the story behind its difficult production, and its limited run created a passionate response from fans, with the show gaining a cult following. A 1991 book written by Ken Mandelbaum, which chronicled the history of flop Broadway musicals, was partially entitled Not Since Carrie, and a 2021 podcast and subsequent 2023 book, Out for Blood, documented its creation and development.
An Off-Broadway revival premiered in 2012 at the Lucille Lortel Theatre, with the book and score almost entirely revised by Cohen, Pitchford, and Gore. The revival received better reviews than the original production. It became the official version of the show, and opened the rights for licensing the following year. A musical episode of Riverdale centered around the musical and using the revival versions of the songs aired on The CW in 2018.