Tony nominee Phillipa Soo returns to Broadway in AMELIE, a new musical based on the beloved five-time Oscar-nominated film, and "an enchanting act of theatrical reinvention" (The Los Angeles Times).
Amelie is an extraordinary young woman who lives quietly in the world, but loudly in her mind. She covertly improvises small, but surprising acts of kindness that bring joy to those around her. But when a chance at love comes her way, Amelie realizes that to find happiness she'll have to risk everything and say what's in her heart. Come be inspired by this imaginative dreamer who finds her voice, discovers the power of connection and sees possibility around every corner. In these uncertain times, Amelie is someone to believe in.
Directed by Tony winner Pam MacKinnon (Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?), with a book by Pulitzer Prize and Tony nominee Craig Lucas (The Light in the Piazza) and an original score by Daniel Messe and Nathan Tysen, AMELIE "proves that the world is better when we're all in it together" (Paste Magazine).
As the title character in the musical 'Amélie,' a lonely young woman spreading warmth and doing good deeds even as she remains cocooned in isolation, the wonderful Phillipa Soo radiates her own brand of soulful magic. With her bright, pure soprano, and a face so expressive it might almost be a glowing high-definition television screen, Soo almost single-handedly transforms this sugar-rich, gossamer adaptation of the popular French movie into an emotionally rewarding evening. The musical, at the Walter Kerr Theatre, retains all of the madcap diversions of the 2001 movie. Anyone allergic to whimsy will want to give the theater a wide berth - a few blocks at least - while 'Amélie' is in residence. Aside from the protagonist, the characters are all card-carrying eccentrics, and we are treated to both a singing goldfish and a singing garden gnome, among other surrealities.
Adaptation is an ancient and noble art, but some things simply work better on film. Jean-Pierre Jeunet's swoony-cartoony movie, with its saturated reds and greens, manic angles and surreal flourishes (lovelorn Amélie deliquesces in a literal rain of tears!) has an exuberance that makes the baroque whimsy go down like a fine bordeaux. But what's the theatrical equivalent of a perfectly framed close-up? A three-minute ballad from the heart? Not exactly. So book writer Craig Lucas and songwriters Daniel Messé and Nathan Tysen are at pains to articulate a singable emotional center of the source while staying true to its careening, cinematic narrative. The two duties ultimately cancel each other out.
2015 | Los Angeles |
Berkley Rep World Premiere Production Los Angeles |
2016 | Los Angeles |
Center Theatre Group Pre-Broadway Engagement Los Angeles |
2017 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
2021 | West End |
West End Premiere West End |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2017 | Drama League Awards | Outstanding Production of a Broadway of Off-Broadway Musical | Amélie, A New Musical |
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