Batman: The Musical (Shadows in the Gloom)

[Ultimatehero]

BATMAN: SHADOWS IN THE GLOOM

I wrote this a couple of years ago. I'll admit at first I took a break because I thought it would need some work before being released, it was originally supposed to come out alongside TDKR premiering. Then it got lost in the shuffle. Years later I decided to give it another read and readily enjoyed it a lot. Turns out, I had just read it too many times back then to judge accurately. There are some hiccups, but overall I still think it's very entertaining. What I was going for was asking the question -- could it be accomplished without it coming off as hokey or cheesy? And I think I accomplished that challenge and readily pulled it off. It's gothic, morose, dark. And in the end - it feels Batman and that was main thing I wanted with this. It also contains some graphic violence which separates it from some other musicals.

INSPIRATIONS:
- Sweeney Todd
- Phantom of the Opera
- Jekyll and Hyde

I just have one final note to add, due to when it was written there are some sequences detailing audience participation. This was my favorite element with The Lion King and Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark which had Spider-Man popping up around the theater to fight crime. Sadly, these sequences may read darker than I originally intended due to the tragedy now sadly connected to the most recent film franchise. These scenes were there before and they've been kept in. I just thought something needed to be said here.

And here it is:

DOWNLOAD LINK:

http://freepdfhosting.com/ab61be0da8.pdf

SONG PLAYLIST:

THE BEGINNING IS THE END IS THE BEGINNING - SMASHING PUMPKINS

THE RIVER - BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN

STORM BY SALIVA

IF I COULD FLY BY HELLOWEEN

CELLS BY SERVANT

DROWN IN YOU BY DAUGHTRY

SMILE DARN YA SMILE BY BILLY COTTON

WHO I AM BY SMILE EMPTY SOUL

SECRET BY HEART

PARTY MAN BY PRINCE / WHERE'S THE FUN IN THAT AS IN BATMAN: BRAVE AND THE BOLD

BOULEVARD OF BROKEN DREAMS BY GREEN DAY

AIN'T NO GRAVE BY JOHNNY CASH

BREED BY LAUREN CHRISTY

TONIGHT HE GRINS BY SAVATAGE

KISSED BY A ROSE BY SEAL

I'M GOING SLIGHTLY MAD BY QUEEN

AFTERDARK BY BLAQK AUDIO

BEHIND BLUE EYES BY THE WHO

THE END IS THE BEGINNING IS THE END BY SMASHING PUMPKINS

DERANGED BY COHEED AND CAMBRIA

WAITING FOR THE NIGHT TO FALL BY DEPECHE MODE

GOTHAM CITY BY R KELLY

 

[danlav05]

Very interesting - the song certainly fits the story.



Batman The Musical has certainly been mooted before, but as a BIG TIME musical theatre fan, I look forward to seeing how this unfolds

 

[Ultimatehero]

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH: THE WRITER

WHAT EXACTLY IS YOUR BACKGROUND?

I think a lot on here already know.

I also wrote a Spider-Man 4 screenplay here which fans loved and thought was on par with Spider-Man 2.

I'm a background actor in 'The Dark Knight Rises.'

WHY A BATMAN MUSICAL?

I saw Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark and liked it a lot. It made me wonder what other superhero could possibly translate onto the stage. And the one that stood out to me the most was surprisingly Batman.

Everyone is hesitant when they hear Batman and musical mentioned in the same sentence. But, I love challenges. Thus, I set about making it a reality.

WHAT CAN WE EXPECT?

I think fans will be very surprised when they see it and give it a chance. It remains very faithful to source material, the characters, and their journeys.

The main villain of the show is the Joker. He provides most of the entertainment. And believe me when I say, you haven't seen Joker like this before. His background stems primarily out of 'The Killing Joke.' And we really dive into how he could become the villain we all love to hate. To me, he's a lot like Sweeney Todd - albeit a lot more psychotic.

There's also a romantic sub-plot between Bruce Wayne and Salina Kyle that takes some of it's cues from 'Batman: Year One.' In many ways this is an origin story exploring how these three characters came to be.

SO WE WILL SEE BATMAN SINGING IN COSTUME?

Sometimes. *Laughs* Sometimes. But I tried to stay away from that. But, I approached it in a way very similarly to Phantom of the Opera. Do we laugh when the Phantom sings? No. Then why would we when Batman sings? I think it's all part of the design process and the tone of the piece. You make it gothic and operatic, it's going to just seem natural to who he is.

WILL THERE BE ANY ORIGINAL SONGS?

Sadly, no. I'm not really a song writer. This will follow the formula of musicals that utilize already pre-existing songs. Many of which can be found on various Batman soundtracks, comic books, and other mediums.

ANY CLOSING WORDS?

Batman: The Musical. Many would say "what the hell is he smoking?" But taking another look - it's the most natural thing in the world. Just look at Sweeney Todd and Phantom of the Opera. Both very gothic and both very very dark. It's based heavily on the source material in such a way that I think/hope fans will find these characters just fascinating as I do.

It's a classic tale we all know. Of how things began, but with a new twist. Look for it in July. Peace out.

 

[Ultimatehero]

I am finally going to be posting this tonight, it's been on my computer for two years now. And taking a two year break and going back to it - it's a lot better and more entertaining than what I remembered. Guess I just read it one too many times. So, it'll finally be posted tonight.

 

[Ultimatehero]

EDIT: I've decided to post this in the first post instead. Enjoy.

 

[amusementfilms]

Cool idea!