THEY ARE MAKING A MUSICAL ABOUT X/?%&?/!?

If you’ve been paying attention, you may have noticed that composers are fully capable of crafting a musical about ANYTHING, from green skinned ogres called Shrek to people who have tried and succeeded in assassinating the president (or presidential hopefuls) to stories about ships that hit icebergs and sink. No topic seems to be out of bounds or totally unmentionable. To prove that point the Westport Country Playhouse is offering up a behind the curtain look at how and why these musicals have hit the spotlights. In “They Made It a Musical!” you are invited to unwrap the origins and inspirations for a number of surprising stories and the songs they birthed from July 18-20, in a quartet of performances that are sure to amaze and delight you.

According to the Playhouse’s Artistic Director Mark Shanahan, with a concept he developed with Broadway historian Laurence Maslon, all lovers of musical theater will be delighted to enter the genius minds of a variety of composers to glean where these unique and different ideas sprang. To Shanahan, the evening will offer “a treasure trove of surprising tales…a perfect, fun-filled, moving night of summer entertainment at the Playhouse!”

Imagine learning the backstory to such wonders as “Fiddler on the Roof” and “Annie,” “Sweeney Todd” and “Hamilton.” You already know that the tragic tale of “Romeo and Juliet” has already given rise to “West Side Story” and many other stories of star-crossed lovers, while George Bernard Shaw’s little flower girl of “Pygmalion has grown up to become “My Fair Lady.” But how many intriguing stories like these exist waiting to expose their roots and wings.

Maslon confidently boasted “Great Broadway shows began as puzzles until our most esteemed writers, such as Rodgers and Hammerstein, Lerner and Loewe, and Lin-Manuel Miranda, to name just a few, unlocked their secrets and beautiful shows sprang out to enchant us all.” The performers waiting eagerly to reveal these secrets in stories and song are Broadway stars Christian DeMarais, Guy Lockard, Kristen Hahn, Maria Bilbao, John Rapson and Sophia Tzougros.

For tickets ($45-65), call Westport Country Playhouse, 25 Powers Court, route One, Westport at 203-227-4177 or 1-888-927-7529 or online at westportplayhouse.org. Performances are Thursday and Friday at 8 p.m., and Saturday at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Musical theater lovers unite and learn together about the histories and legends surrounding some of your favorite Broadway shows and how they came to be. Fascinating!