In the history of American musical theater, it usually went something like this: there would be a book, that would be turned into a play, that would be turned into a musical.
Then in the 1940's — especially with great team of Rodgers and Hammerstein — some of those stage musicals would be turned into movies.
What's happening more and more in recent years is that there will be a movie (often an animated feature) which becomes a musical on Broadway.
This version of Beauty and the Beast — released in March of 2017 — has already grossed about $1.2 billion. In just 10 days, it became the highest grossing live-action musical of all time.
Emma Watson leads the star-studded cast as Belle, along with Dan Stevens, Kevin Kline, Stanley Tucci, Ewan McGregor, Ian McKellen, Emma Thompson, Audra McDonald, and more. On this week's Flicks in Five, we'll hear some of Alan Menken's score from Beauty and the Beast.