Blondel (musical)
| Musical dates | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Blondel |
| Original language: | English |
| Music: | Stephen Oliver |
| Book: | Tim Rice |
| Lyrics: | Tim Rice |
| Literary source: | Legend of the troubadour Blondel de Nesle |
| Premiere: | 1983 |
| Place and time of the action: | Middle Ages , at the time of the Third Crusade |
Blondel is a musical from 1983 . It was written by Tim Rice (book, lyrics) and Stephen Oliver (music). The story takes place in the Middle Ages , at the time of the Third Crusade , but is characterized by anachronisms .
action
The plot of Blondel is very loosely based on the legend about the troubadour Blondel de Nesle , whose efforts to save King Richard the Lionheart are driven not least in the musical by his desire to achieve fame as a pop star himself . A choir of monks takes on the narrative function. A love story and social criticism are introduced by Blondel's friend Fiona, who fights as an activist for the rights and freedoms of the 20th century, while Blondel presents herself as a conservative monarchist .
Emergence
Tim Rice had the idea for a musical about the time of the English king Richard the Lionheart in the late 1960s under the working title Come Back Richard Your Country Needs You (German: Come back, Richard, your country needs you ) together with the composer Andrew Lloyd Webber , with whom he was working at the time, developed. Even a single of the same title was produced in 1969 , but the project was abandoned in favor of working on Jesus Christ Superstar . It was not until 1982 that Tim Rice took up the subject again, although instead of the story of the king he focused on the subject of the blonde legend .
After a few screenings in Bath and Manchester celebrated Blondel on 2. November 1983 its premiere in London's West End in the Old Vic Theater . After eleven months of play, the production moved to the Aldwych Theater , where it ran for another eight months. A Broadway premiere of the musical is still pending. After it was shown less and less in theaters and school performances, a London revival took place at the Pleasance Islington Theater from November 23rd to the end of December 2006 .
core items
The most famous songs of the musical are The Least of My Troubles (sung by Blondel and Fiona), Saladin Days (Richard and the monk choir) and "I'm a monarchist" (Blondel and the Fabulous Blondettes).
The best-known quote from the piece reads: Who said this piece wasn't educational? (German: Who says this piece is not instructive? ). With these words, the monks at the end of the first act underline the remaining historical claim of the work, which, however, is largely behind the comic elements.