Welcome to CARRIE: The Musical! This musical follows the story of Carrie White, a young girl with telekinesis, who must suffer through bullying by her classmates until she decides to put her powers to use. The story of Carrie and her destruction of her high school prom is well known within our cultural zeitgeist. Since the publication of the classic book in 1974 by Stephen King and the iconic film in 1976, many horror films, TV shows, books, and even cartoons have since paid homage to CARRIE and the blood drop scene at the prom.

Less known is the rich history and horrifying tale of the musical, which is aptly named, CARRIE: The Musical.

After the success of King's novel and Brian de Palma's cinematic adaptation, screenwriter Lawrence D. Cohen (who wrote the script for de Palma's 1976 film) and composer Michael Gore set to work on a musical version of the material. Gore, who wrote the hit musical Fame, brought in his collaborator on that project, Dean Pitchford, to help with rewrites. The musical had its first workshop in 1984, but it took several years to scrabble together funding. It wouldn't see the stage until 1988. The show had a trial run in Stratford-upon-Avon, England, in February 1988 that was riddled with script and technical problems. Barbara Cook, who played Carrie’s hysterically evangelical mother Margaret, resigned on opening night after she was almost decapitated by a set piece (although never proven). Several songs were removed, and several others added during the four-week workshop at Stratford. By the time it was over, it was growing pretty clear that the writers and composers had a cold turkey on their hands.

CARRIE: The Musical made its disastrous way to Broadway for $8 million, an astronomical number for 1988. Cook was replaced by actress Betty Buckley, who played Carrie's teacher Miss Collins in de Palma’s film, but even that added trivia couldn’t boost the show’s miserable fate. The show opened for previews on April 28, 1988 to wildly mixed reactions. The curtain call was met with both boisterous applause and loud boos. The press wasn’t kind to the musical, and their scathing reviews ultimately sank the project. Though it was sold out every night, the financial backers pulled their money. CARRIE: The Musical officially opened on May 12, 1988 and officially closed on May 15, after only five performances.

CARRIE: The Musical's brief stay on Broadway and crazy production history made it the subject of obsession for theatre aficionados, (me included). It inspired a book—Ken Mandelbaum's Not Since Carrie: Forty Years of Broadway Musical Flops–and bootlegs from the Stratford and New York performances made the rounds, which grew the show's popularity. It became a staple in high school and college theatre clubs, inspired parodies, and a few of the songs (like When There’s No One) even became popular solo audition songs.

The ongoing interest in CARRIE: The Musical led to an off-Broadway revival in 2012. A lot of the songs from the 1988 production were replaced and the story arc now focuses on Sue along with Carrie as the two carrying the show’s plot. In the revision, the writers also focused the script on the bullying of Carrie by her classmates and lead with the message, "What does it take to be kind?" A message that I feel we all can take with us in today’s world. The 2012 revival is, thankfully, the version we present to you tonight. It’s a fun, fast, energetic ride, that will hopefully take you back to the thrills and message that Stephen King first envisioned with his telling of Carrie.

Sincerely,

Teddy Eck, Director