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The 1990's offered some of the most ground-breaking productions in the history of musical theatre. Musicals such as "Rent," "Miss Saigon" and "The Secret Garden" served to attract an entirely new and diverse generation of theatre enthusiasts. An exciting edition to the theatrical repertoire during this era was the development of the gothic musical. The gothic musical generally offers a fresh take on a classic tale and is spun with haunting music and lyrics. Dark and moody, although effectively laced with realistic character development and dialogue, these pieces transport us to an entirely different world, and therefore serve the most fundamental purpose of theatre. The most successful gothic musical during the experimental 1990's was "Jekyll & Hyde: The Musical."

"Jekyll and Hyde," based on Robert Louis Stevenson's classic novella, originally opened in Houston, Texas at the Alley Theatre 1990. The story follows the mania of Dr. Jekyll who, upon taking an elixir of his own invention, reveals a devastating and evil side of his personality, Mr. Hyde. The two facets of the personality battle within, while Dr. Jekyll's love interests, Emma and Lucy, suffer in the wake of a man in turmoil. The music by Steve Cudon and Frank Wildhorn meshed with the lyrics of Leslie Bricusse to create a moving and lasting musical theatre experience. The show went on the road in 1995 with a 28 city tour which provided the time and an outlet for fine details of the show to be tweaked and evaluated. "Jekyll" later opened on Broadway in 1996 to packed houses and earned four Tony Award nominations.

While "Jekyll and Hyde" was not the most critically acclaimed musical of the nineties, it remains a favorite with theatre enthusiasts, as it broke through the stereotype of the stuffy musical and allowed the gothic musical genre to reach a larger audience. With its diverse music and believable characters, "Jekyll" allows the audience to have a beautiful and emotional theatrical experience without the unapproachable quality of an opera such as "La Boehm," nor the shocking quality of street-slang strewn "Rent." The songs range from up-beat suspense building numbers such as "Murder, Murder" to the sweet sincerity of the ballads "Take Me as I Am" and "A New Life." The music is classic gothic, laced with haunting minor keys and unexpected changes throughout; it provides a perfect vehicle for lyrics which swell with the emotion of the story.

Throughout the show's history, it has served as a vehicle

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