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| The Cher Show | |
|---|---|
| Name | The Cher Show |
| Music | Various; original arrangements by Bob Mackie |
| Lyrics | Various |
| Book | Rick Elice |
| Basis | Life and career of Cher |
| Premiere date | 2018 |
| Premiere place | Huntington Theatre Company |
| Productions | Broadway (2018–2019); tours (2019–2020); international productions |
The Cher Show is a jukebox musical chronicling the life and career of a prominent American singer and actress. The production interleaves stagecraft, costume design, and popular music to depict relationships, fame, and reinvention across decades. The creative team and cast drew upon histories of Broadway, Los Angeles, New York City, Las Vegas, and Hollywood to recreate milestones in the subject's professional partnerships and public persona.
The musical was conceived amid a lineage of biographical stage pieces such as Jersey Boys, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, Ain't Too Proud, Tina: The Tina Turner Musical, and Evita. Project development involved negotiations with figures linked to Bob Mackie, Sonny Bono, Cher's estate and entertainment producers who had worked with Mikhail Baryshnikov, Liza Minnelli, Dolly Parton, and Madonna (entertainer). Creative direction drew on the storytelling strategies of Andrew Lloyd Webber, Stephen Sondheim, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Harold Prince, and Michael Bennett. Workshops and readings featured professionals from Lincoln Center Theater, American Conservatory Theater, La Jolla Playhouse, Huntington Theatre Company, and Goodman Theatre.
The world premiere at the Huntington Theatre Company led to an out-of-town engagement that transitioned to Broadway, following the path of shows developed at Arena Stage, Alley Theatre, and Paper Mill Playhouse. The Broadway run opened at the Neil Simon Theatre with producers who had credits including Cameron Mackintosh, Daryl Roth, Tom Schumacher, and Gerald Schoenfeld. Direction and choreography involved artists associated with Rob Marshall, Susan Stroman, Jerry Mitchell, Kathleen Marshall, and Christopher Gattelli. Technical teams included designers who had worked on productions at Roundabout Theatre Company, Public Theater, and Carnegie Hall. The Broadway cast performed in a schedule influenced by unions such as Actors' Equity Association and contracts overseen by representatives linked to The Shubert Organization and Nederlander Organization.
Casting choices reflected lineage from performers with credits on Saturday Night Live, The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, The Ed Sullivan Show, The Muppet Show, and The Academy Awards. Principal performers who alternated in the lead role brought experience from Glee, American Idol, RuPaul's Drag Race, Dancing with the Stars, and The X Factor. Supporting roles portrayed collaborators and rivals including figures associated with Sonny Bono, Glen Campbell, David Geffen, Phil Spector, Bob Dylan, Cher's family members, and entertainment executives from Warner Bros., Paramount Pictures, Columbia Records, MCA Records, and Atlantic Records. Ensemble members had credits in productions at Broadway.com, Playbill, Variety (magazine), The New York Times, and Rolling Stone.
The musical repertoire comprised hits connected to the central figure's recording career and filmography, sharing curatorial approaches with jukebox shows like Mamma Mia!, Jersey Boys, and Movin' Out. Arrangements referenced recordings issued by Atco Records, Geffen Records, Imperial Records, MCA Records, and Reprise Records. Orchestrators and music directors brought experience from concerts by Cher (singer), Madonna (entertainer), Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, Diana Ross, Barbra Streisand, and Janet Jackson. Musical staging echoed production values seen in tours by The Rolling Stones, U2, Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney, and Elton John.
Reviews compared the show to milestone jukebox and biographical musicals such as Sunset Boulevard, Jersey Boys, Kinky Boots, Once (musical), and Hamilton (musical). Critics from outlets including The New York Times, Variety (magazine), The Guardian, Time (magazine), The Washington Post, Entertainment Weekly, New York Post, and Los Angeles Times assessed performance, staging, and historical interpretation. Awards bodies with which the production was associated included the Tony Awards, Drama Desk Awards, Outer Critics Circle Awards, Olivier Awards, Grammy Awards, and Drama League Awards; nominations and wins reflected recognition of costume design, performance, and direction drawn from teams with prior honors from Academy Awards, Emmy Awards, and Golden Globe Awards.
Following its Broadway engagement, the show mounted national tours and international productions in markets such as Toronto, London, Sydney, Melbourne, Paris, Berlin, Madrid, Tokyo, Seoul, and Moscow. Touring producers partnered with entities like Nederlander Organization, Ambassador Theatre Group, Troika, and regional presenters at venues including Chicago Theatre, Orpheum Theatre (San Francisco), Stratford Festival, and Sydney Opera House. Casts on tour included performers with credits on West End, Off-Broadway, Regional theatre, and televised variety specials on BBC, NBC, CBS, ABC, and FOX.
The production contributed to ongoing discourse about representation, celebrity, and cultural memory alongside works focusing on Aretha Franklin, Nina Simone, Whitney Houston, Amy Winehouse, and Prince (musician). Its influence extended to costume scholarship in museums like the Metropolitan Museum of Art, curatorial projects at the Smithsonian Institution, and retrospectives on networks such as VH1 and MTV (U.S. TV channel). The show's life on stage informed academic inquiry at institutions including NYU, Yale School of Drama, Harvard University, UCLA, and USC School of Dramatic Arts and inspired new biographical musicals in the vein of Tina: The Tina Turner Musical and Ain't Too Proud.
Category:2018 musicals