The Little Things We Used To Do

Abstract

This chapter addresses the British musical in the 1970s and 1980s. The review (of old music) replaced the revue, as can be seen in the mermaid's Cowardy Custard (1972) and Cole (1974), which were both stylish recapitulations of Noël Coward and Cole Porter. They had flavorsome casts, though the singing was variable. The chapter then focuses on two adaptations: The Good Companions (1974) and Peg (1984). It also considers the staging of movie musicals. This is not a ground-breaking genre, but one title that now stands out as a secret classic is Alan Parker's staging of the movie Bugsy Malone, in 1983. The staging of this retained all ten of the movie's numbers without emendation, and while the entire cast was dubbed onscreen, Parker had his stage cast doing their own vocals.