Actually, the original German musical (which was co-written and directed for the stage by Polanski) is brilliant, and keeps much of the film content intact. The musical is in sung-through format (i.e., much like an opera, with very few spoken lines) in the way of "The Phantom of the Opera" or "Les Miserables." Von Krolock's songs are dark and poignant, with titles like "Gott ist Tot" ("God is Dead") and "Die Unstillbare Gier" ("The Insatiable Appetite"), and not at all silly. And, yes, the townsfolk do have a big production number, singing of the miraculous properties of Garlic ("Knoblauch!"). (The castle/windmill lines are there too, in spoken dialog between Abronsius and Chagal.) But much of the film's original humor is still there, embodied in Alfred, Abronsius, Chagal, and company, and most of the jokes from the film, as well as its prevalent themes and subtexts (the oppression of the peasant classes by a corrupt aristocracy, and the "moral" that evil often wins over virtue), are also to be found in the original musical. Quite a delicate balance, that Polanski achieves beautifully in translating his film to the musical stage!
However, as Abronsius posted above, the BROADWAY version of the musical WAS utter trash! In an eerie parallel to what happened when the original film was "altered" without Polanski's involvement or approval, and working on the same false premise -- that "European" humor won't work in America -- the Broadway producers completely scrapped Polanski's story and tried to turn the musical into a Mel Brooks-type send-up, with (naturally, and inevitably!) disastrous results! (For Pete's sake, Chagal wasn't even Jewish in the Broadway version, and Von Krolock, not Abronsius and Alfred, was turned into the "comedian" of the piece! Travesty!)
I would LOVE to see Polanski direct a film version of his hit musical, and be able to add it to my DVD shelf beside his brilliant original film version! That would be my dream come true! :-)
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