A Bad Boy who Sings

Romantic comedies have long been blamed for giving women and girls unrealistic expectations for men and romance.  But, while some girls my age grew up dreaming of Westley from The Princess Bride or Harry from When Harry Met Sally, I dreamed of Henry Higgins from the musical My Fair Lady.  As my romantic interests developed I would vacillate between wanting a man like Henry Higgins (an intellectual who presents a grumpy exterior but can be warmed by the right woman) and a man like Eliza Doolittle’s other suitor Freddy Eynsford-Hill (a moderately dim, but totally openhearted man who wants nothing more than to wait outside a woman’s house until she decides to grace him with her presence).  Frankly, I blame all my indecisiveness about men during my teens and twenties on My Fair Lady.  It explains a lot.

Recently I saw a production of The Music Man that featured a particularly lecherous portrayal of the main character Harold Hill.  Now this character is supposed to be a bit of a good “bad boy”, but in this production he bordered on creepy and I was afraid he might slip Marian the Librarian a roofie.  Meet you later by the hollow log?  Only if I bring pepper spray.

This got me thinking about other somewhat questionable male/female interactions in the beloved musicals from my childhood.  When I listened to some of the lyrics without the dreamy romantic blinders of my childhood, I noticed how incredibly sexist they can be.  Here are a few choice examples.

NOTE: this is not a serious critique of musicals and is meant to be humorous.  I don’t actually believe musical theatre is bad for young girls.

The King and I

Arguably one of the more sexually charged of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals, the King of Siam and school teacher Anna flirt and fight about values and trade ideas.  And take one pretty amazing spin around the dance floor.  You can tell the King respects Anna as much as he is able to respect any woman.  The problem comes from the way the King treats the other women in his life, his slaves and concubines. 

His chief wife sings,

“The Thoughtless things he'll do
Will hurt and worry you
But all at once he'll do
Something wonderful”

“You'll always go along,

Defend him when he's wrong

And tell him, when he's strong

He is wonderful

He'll always need your love

And so he'll get your love.

A man who needs your love

Can be wonderful.”

So basically, stand by your man no matter what and you will occasionally be rewarded with his good behavior.  Got it.

Carousel

This one is tough for me because its my favorite Rodgers and Hammerstein musical.  No matter what the lyrics say or mean, the music is undeniably gorgeous.  And there are lots of good examples here for girls to stay strong and be independent and that they can make it on their own. 

However, lyrics like these make it a little harder to support this one fully.

“Something made him the way that he is,

Whether he's false or true,

And something gave him the things that are his,

One of those things is you, so

When he wants your kisses,

You will give them to the lad,

And anywhere he leads you, you will walk.

And anytime he needs you,

You'll go running there like mad.”

This takes the sentiment from the Kind and I one step further.  In this case you need to support your man and not even expect anything in return.

Phantom of the Opera

In case it seems like I’m ignoring the fact that attitudes about women in the 50’s and 60’s were very different than now, here is an example from the much more progressive 80’s.  As a friend of mine put it, the Phantom and Christine have a “creepy father/sex thing going on”.  Is the Phantom a teacher?  A love interest?  A father figure?  With lyrics like this, the line seems dangerously blurry.

“Close your Eyes –
For your eyes will only tell the truth
And the truth isn’t what you want to see
In the dark it is easy to pretend
That the truth is what it ought to be.

Floating, falling, Sweet Intoxication
Touch me, trust me, savor each Sensation
Let the dream begin, Let your darker side give in
To the Power of the music that I write”

The list of questionable musicals could go on and on.  From “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers” (kidnapping) to “Oliver!” (domestic abuse) to "South Pacific" (pimping out one’s daughter).  Even good old Jesus himself isn’t immune as he seems to spend a awful lot of time in "Jesus Christ Superstar" yelling at Mary Magdalene.

So what can we make of these musicals and the relations they portray?  This list might seem damning, but these examples aren’t that different than the way women act in many contemporary romantic comedies.  So are musicals sexist and hopelessly outdated?  Maybe.  But am I going to go listen to Carousel on my iPod right now?  Definitely.