Starlight Express on Broadway

[EvanstonDad]

Posted: 4/25/22 at 6:02pm

I recently fell down the rabbit hole and have been watching footage from some of the original Broadway and London productions of Starlight Express. In another mood, I would think this show was pretty terrible, but lately I'm feeling generous and have decided that it's terrible in a delightfully entertaining way. I would have loved to see it for the spectacle alone. It had to be like watching Springtime for Hitler. 

Did anyone see the original New York production, and what was it like? Was it good, bad, or bad in a good way?

Also, is there a cast recording of the original Broadway version, or at least a recording that captures the version as it appeared on Broadway? It seems like a show that's undergone so many changes that the original doesn't even exist anymore.

[OuttaTowner]

Posted: 4/25/22 at 6:58pm

I saw it - and have successfully blocked out most of the trauma. It was VERY loud and I remember being antsy after about 20 minutes, when I realized there were only so many ways for them to skate across the stage.

I vaguely recollect appreciating the efforts of some of the cast (Andrea McArdle, Jane Krakowski and Robert Torti among them) trying to salvage this (excuse the pun) train wreck. Particularly irritating was the shrill , ear-splitting voice of the unseen boy/owner of the train set which was blasted over the over synthesized score every few minutes. 

[BalconyClub]

Posted: 4/25/22 at 7:09pm

I was totally enamored by the Starlight score and the premise. I remember riding Amtrak between Chicago and NY to see Starlight and other shows: Les Miz and a preview of Into the Woods.

Thinking back, it was a fun spectacle.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 4/25/22 at 7:31pm

https://www.google.com/search?q=starlight+express+germany&rlz=1C1GCEA_enUS950US950&sxsrf=APq-WBsKoEuAe2auNsOrAbCpZ2gnuLhYzg:1650929363259&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjU5vuRr7D3AhUjKUQIHdK-BLgQ_AUoAXoECAIQAw&biw=1481&bih=893&dpr=1#imgrc=Hr2zY6eorYem8M

https://www.agefotostock.com/age/en/details-photo/starlight-express-theater-bochum-north-rhine-westphalia-germany/FNL-8758027

Not sure how to post photos, but I agree with you about the spectacle. In Germany - where I think it's still running - they built a theater specifically for it! Pretty fascinating to me.

Germany tends to like spectacle.

[TaffyDavenport]

Posted: 4/25/22 at 7:46pm

I saw thew show at the Gershwin, but I don't remember much about it. Here's the Broadway press reel:

 

Updated On: 4/25/22 at 07:46 PM

[TaffyDavenport]

Posted: 4/25/22 at 7:49pm

And this is from the German production, just last week:

 

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 4/25/22 at 7:54pm

The show ran quite a bit longer in London than it did on Broadway. There are several different versions of the show. I think the 1992 London revamp was the best version. The version being performed in Germany now is so far gone from the original and 92 versions it should probably not even be called Starlight Express anymore.

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 4/25/22 at 8:55pm

I saw this in London in the 90s, hated every second of it. I also hated Cats so it made sense this show would not be for me, considering both shows are basically the same. 

[morosco]

Posted: 4/25/22 at 9:57pm

Saw the Broadway production. John Napier's set was a wow. It was VERY loud. After the first few minutes I was bored out of my mind. And there seemed to be nothing but one silly race after another. Just when I'd think it was almost over.... "It's race time" again.

Updated On: 4/26/22 at 09:57 PM

[Wick3]

Posted: 4/25/22 at 10:46pm

I didn’t see it on Broadway but I wish I did. Instead i watched it in Las Vegas during a family vacation in the mid-90s and we loved the spectacle! I was 9 years old and I thought it was great fun.

Someday I hope to watch it in Germany and sit in one of those swivel seats! 

[Bill Snibson]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 2:00am

Saw it on broadway when I was just discovering my love of musical theater and loved it. Its an awfully stupid show but the set was phenomenal! Three levels with massive ramps and a moving bridge. There were 2 sections of seating built into the stage, sort of like at Moulin Rouge. Whenever a race would start these plexi walls would rise up around those sections for safety. During the pre-show there were a couple of toy trains that ran along a track. 

[EvanstonDad]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 11:09am

Thanks all for sharing your experiences and opinions, particularly those focusing on the set design. I think that's what has gotten me so fascinated in this show all of a sudden. The Broadway set looks stunning. I've heard the London cast recording, and the show is a mix of awful songs ("Freight" anyone?) and really catchy moments that I genuinely like. But more than anything I wish I could go back in time and just take in the physical production.

[Bill Snibson]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 11:50am

Oh, and don’t forget it featured Andrea McArdle and Jane Krakowski. Jane was very cute and funny as Dinah, the dining car, she was ditzy and wore a 50’s type diner waitress costume. 

[Lot666]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 1:45pm

John Napier is the boss.

[nealb1]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 2:02pm

I saw it in August 1988 and loved every minute of it!

Updated On: 4/27/22 at 02:02 PM

[RippedMan]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 2:08pm

I agree, the design sounds baller. It's how I feel about the original Cats at the Winter Garden. I think if I saw it with its spectacle I'd maybe be more into it, but all the version we've had since have been very cheap and boring. Even the most recent Broadway revival was dull and had no spectacle. 

[goldenboy]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 2:22pm

I saw it in London and I thought the damned thing would never end.

I almost left at intermission. I asked the usher if act two were any better. She hesitantly said yes and I stayed. I should have left and had a Sidecar at a nearby pup.

Excruciating experience.

[bearhorn]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 8:24pm

I saw this twice on Broadway - once in 1987, once in 1988  Sure, I see the show's many faults now... but back then, I absolutely loved it.