Legally Blonde (musical)

Legally Blonde
Original Broadway production
Music	Nell Benjamin Laurence O'Keefe
Lyrics	Nell Benjamin Laurence O'Keefe
Book	Heather Hach
Basis	2001 film Legally Blonde and 2001 novel by Amanda Brown
Premiere	January 23, 2007 – Golden Gate Theatre, San Francisco
Productions	2007 San Francisco tryout 2007 Broadway 2008 1st US Tour 2009 South Korea 2009 West End 2009 Philippines 2010 Netherlands 2010 2nd US Tour 2010 Paris 2010 Philippines 2011 UK Tour 2011 Finland 2011 St. Louis 2012 Sydney 2012 San Diego 2013 Vienna 2014 Quebec City 2015 Abu Dhabi 2016 Sweden, Varberg Various Regional Productions
Awards	Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical

Legally Blonde is a musical with music and lyrics by Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin and book by Heather Hach. The story is based on the novel Legally Blonde by Amanda Brown and the 2001 film of the same name. It tells the story of Elle Woods, a sorority girl who enrolls at Harvard Law School to win back her ex-boyfriend Warner. She discovers how her knowledge of the law can help others, and successfully defends exercise queen Brooke Wyndham in a murder trial. Throughout the show, no one has faith in Elle Woods, but she manages to surprise them when she defies expectations while staying true to herself.

Legally Blonde premiered in pre-Broadway tryouts in San Francisco, California. In April 2007 the show moved to Broadway, opening to mostly positive reviews and grossed more than $1,000,000 a week on several occasions. Jerry Mitchell directed and choreographed. The original cast included Laura Bell Bundy as Elle, Christian Borle as Emmett and Richard H. Blake as Warner. It received seven Tony nominations and ten Drama Desk nominations but failed to win any. The West End production opened in January 2010 at the Savoy Theatre. The West End production was nominated for five Laurence Olivier Awards and won three, including the Best New Musical award.

The musical was recorded in September 2007 and aired on MTV in October 2007. Following this, a reality TV program was aired showing the audition process for the next person to play Elle Woods on Broadway. The winner was Bailey Hanks, who played the role from July 23, 2008 until the production closed on October 19, 2008. The Runner up, Autumn Hurlbert was Bailey's understudy. ^[1]

Synopsis

Act One

The overjoyed girls of UCLA's sorority Delta Nu, led by Margot, Serena, and Pilar, celebrate the engagement of Warner Huntington III to their perky, sweet, and strikingly blonde sorority president, Elle Woods, who is fretting over finding the perfect dress for the occasion ("Omigod You Guys"). Once she acquires her dream dress, Elle goes to dinner with Warner, where he tells her that he needs someone more serious ("Serious") and breaks up with her. Elle is devastated and sulks for twelve days ("Daughter Of Delta Nu") but decides to chase Warner to Harvard Law School to show him that she can be serious. With help from Delta Nu sister Kate, Elle studies for the LSAT. Instead of writing a personal essay, Elle bursts into the Harvard admission offices backed by a squad of cheerleaders. She is accepted after revealing she is motivated by love ("What You Want").

Elle's snobby classmates disapprove of her attire, and the only person who is willing to help her is law teaching assistant, Emmett Forrest ("The Harvard Variations"). However, he can't protect her in class from the bloodthirsty Professor Callahan ("Blood in the Water"). Callahan kicks the under-prepared Elle out of class at the suggestion of her classmate Vivienne Kensington, who happens to be Warner's new girlfriend. This "tragedy" summons the apparitions of the sisters of Delta Nu, who, acting as a Greek Chorus visible and audible only to Elle, tell her to stay positive ("Positive"). Elle, deciding that being blonde is the problem, decides to become a brunette. She heads to the Hair Affair salon where she meets the spunky beautician Paulette, who tells Elle that when she is down, she puts on her favorite CD, and dreams of Ireland ("Ireland"). At the salon, Vivienne gives Elle an unexpected invitation to a costume party. Paulette sends Elle off with a costume for the party, her positivism and blonde hair still intact ("Ireland (Reprise)").

Walking into the party as a Playboy Bunny, Elle soon realizes that she was tricked by Vivienne but courageously seeks Warner in an effort to win him back, leaving him unimpressed ("Serious (Reprise)"). Elle runs from the party, only to meet Emmett, who struggles to understand Elle's love problems. He has Elle assess her priorities until she realizes it is her obsession with Warner that keeps her from earning his respect ("Chip On My Shoulder"). Freed from her need to please Warner, she defeats him in a classroom debate. Elle then helps Paulette in a way that proves she is beginning to understand law. Warner and Vivienne win two of Callahan's coveted internship positions, and Warner proposes to Vivienne on the spot right in front of Elle. Vivienne accepts, with a kiss and a yes. Before Elle's heart can break, Emmett shows her the internship list. Below the names of Vivienne, Warner, and classmate Enid Hoopes is the name Elle Woods, at which she is ecstatic ("So Much Better").

Act Two

Act Two begins with fitness queen, Brooke Wyndham, and her fitness team's workout video, which is being viewed by Elle, Callahan, Emmett, Vivienne, Warner, and Enid ("Whipped into Shape"). Callahan tells the legal team that Brooke is accused of murdering her billionaire husband. The "video" then turns into a scene from the jail, where Brooke leads the inmates into a fitness frenzy. Brooke then privately tells Elle her alibi, that she was getting liposuction, but makes Elle promise not to tell anyone ("Delta Nu Nu Nu"). Because of Elle's loyalty to her client and refusal to state the alibi, Elle and Emmett are shunned by the group. To cheer Emmett up and to increase his chances of impressing Callahan, Elle gives him a makeover ("Take It Like A Man").

Back at the Hair Affair, Elle is getting a manicure when Kyle, the sexy UPS guy, walks into the salon to deliver a package to Paulette. Paulette is in complete awe. When he leaves, Pilar, Serena, and Margot are summoned by Paulette's amazing "Bend and Snap" when picking up the UPS package. The sorority girls tell Paulette to use the "Bend and Snap" on Kyle, but when she does, she accidentally breaks his nose ("Bend and Snap").

In the courtroom, we see Nikos, Brooke's pool boy, being questioned by the D.A. about his "love affair" with Brooke. After doing the Bend and Snap in front of Nikos and getting no attention, Elle is convinced that Nikos is gay. Callahan and her teammates don't believe her, simply thinking that he is just European ("There, Right There"). Emmett decides to question Nikos on the stand, and successfully makes Nikos slip and state his boyfriend's name is Carlos. Nikos quickly covers that he misunderstood the word "boyfriend" as "Best Friend." Carlos, Nikos' Boyfriend, appears at the end of the courtroom, fed up with the closeted nature of his boyfriend, and proclaims Nikos's homosexuality. At the end of the song, Nikos confesses that he is indeed gay AND European.

Later that night in Callahan's office, the interns celebrate Elle's skill. Warner finds problems with calling a finely tuned awareness of homosexuality a legal victory. Callahan, annoyed with Warner's behaviour, sends Warner out of the room to fetch a coffee. Callahan dismisses Emmett and the other interns but requests Elle to remain for a few moments. Callahan forcibly kisses Elle, who slaps him. In turn, Callahan fires her. Warner and Vivienne both saw the kiss through the door of the room. Warner turns away in anger, leaving Vivienne to be the only one to witness the slap. After Callahan leaves, Warner re-enters the office and mocks Elle, but Vivienne tells him to shut up and they both leave. A defeated Elle prepares to go home, even though Emmett asks her to stay, finally realizing that he is in love with her ("Legally Blonde").

Elle heads to the Hair Affair to say goodbye to Paulette, but before she can leave, Vivienne and Enid convince Elle otherwise ("Legally Blonde Remix"). Elle discards her lawyerly navy suits, dons a pink dress (or pink lawyer suit) and leads a parade back to the courtroom. They meet Kyle on the way, who takes a liking to Paulette, and reveals himself to be the Irish man of her dreams, prompting to Irish Dance among the ensemble. Back at the trial, Brooke fires Callahan and hires Elle. Brooke's stepdaughter Chutney goes to the witness stand and her testimony is damning, stating after she got out of the shower she saw Brooke covered in her father's blood. After Chutney states she received a perm the day of the murder, Elle realizes a flaw in Chutney's alibi and suggests that the entire court should be moved to the scene of the crime - the bathroom where the murder took place ("Scene of the Crime"). As a demonstration, Elle asks Paulette to give Enid a perm, and asks Enid to step into the shower upon entering the crime scene. Relying on her knowledge of hair maintenance, Elle's demonstration is successful as Enid walks out of the shower with completely flattened hair—revealing that Chutney could not have possibly showered immediately after getting a perm because her perm was still intact. Under Elle's intense questioning, Chutney accidentally confesses that she killed her father, thinking that it was Brooke. Chutney is arrested and Brooke is set free. Warner proposes to Elle, having been dumped by Vivienne. Elle gently refuses, claiming to have been changed by the experience ("Find My Way").

Three years later, Elle ends up as the valedictorian of her class. Paulette tells the audience that Elle is not one to brag about her valedictorian status, so she decided to allow Paulette to play "Where are they now" during her speech. Paulette says that Enid practices family law, Vivienne is training for the Peace Corps, and Warner dropped out and pursues a modeling career. Callahan ran for governor but was defeated, and his wife hired Emmett to handle their divorce. Paulette married Kyle, had two kids, and is pregnant with a third. They live in Worcester, Massachusetts and Paulette bought a new salon (the Worcester detail was taken from the London script, and replaced with the detail that a child of hers was named Seamus). At the end of the graduation, Elle proposes to Emmett, and Emmett accepts ("Finale").

Musical numbers

Act I "Overture" – Orchestra †‡ "Omigod You Guys" – Elle, Serena, Margot, Pilar and Company "Serious" – Elle and Warner "Daughter of Delta Nu" – Serena, Margot, Pilar and Company † "What You Want" – Elle, Serena, Margot, Pilar, Kate, Elle's Parents, Grandmaster Chad and Company "The Harvard Variations" – Emmett, Aaron, Enid, Padamadan and Harvard Students "Blood in the Water" – Callahan and Company "Positive" – Elle, Serena, Margot, Pilar and Greek Chorus "Ireland" – Paulette "Ireland" (Reprise) – Paulette "Serious" (Reprise) – Elle and Warner "Chip On My Shoulder" – Elle, Emmett, Greek Chorus "So Much Better" – Elle, Greek Chorus and Company

Act II "Entr'acte" – Orchestra †‡ "Whipped into Shape" – Brooke, Callahan and Company "Delta Nu Nu Nu" – Brooke and Elle † "Take It Like a Man" – Elle, Emmett and Salespeople "Bend and Snap" – Elle, Paulette, Serena, Margot, Pilar, Bend and Snap Guys and Salonfolk "There Right There" – Elle, Callahan, Emmett, Brooke, Vivienne, Warner, Enid, Judge, Nikos, Carlos and Company "Legally Blonde" – Elle and Emmett "Legally Blonde Remix" – Vivienne, Elle, Enid, Brooke, Elle's Parents and Company "Scene of the Crime" – Elle, Judge, Serena, Margot, Pilar and Company † "Find My Way/Finale" – Elle, Paulette, Emmett and Company "Bows" – Orchestra and Company †

During its San Francisco run, the musical included a song called "Love and War" in place of what is now "Positive".^[2] Another predecessor to "Positive" was "Beacon of Positivity".^[3]

During the musical's workshop stage, the song "Good Boy" existed in what would go on to become "Ireland"'s place in the musical.^[4] In the song, Paulette and Elle bond over the idea that men are like dogs and should therefore be treated as such.

"Bows" is featured as an iTunes bonus track on the UK iTunes on the Live London Cast Recording but not featured on the Broadway Recording. "Kyle the Magnificent" is also a bonus track on the Live London Cast Recording after "Take It Like a Man" which is where it is in the show. On the Broadway Cast Recording, it is a hidden track at the end of "Find My Way/Finale".

† Not featured on Original Broadway Cast Recording
‡ Instrumental Mix

Instrumentation

The licensed orchestration follows the orchestration that was used in the West End production: three keyboards, bass, guitar, drums, percussion, two woodwind parts, two trumpets, trombone, and solo violin. The first keyboard part is played by the conductor. The bass part doubles on electric bass, double bass, fretless bass, and 5-string bass. The guitar doubles on electric, acoustic, and 12-string guitars, as well as mandolin. The first woodwind part doubles on alto sax, flute, piccolo, clarinet, oboe (optional), and English horn (optional); the second part doubles on flute, clarinet, and baritone sax. Both trumpets double on flugelhorn and the trombone doubles on tenor and bass trombones.

This orchestration was originally used for the first United States national tour, without the violin and with slightly different reed doublings. The first reed player doubled on alto sax, clarinet, flute, piccolo, oboe (optional), and English horn (optional); the second player doubled on flute, clarinet, bass clarinet, tenor and baritone sax, and pennywhistle.

In addition to the licensed orchestration, the original Broadway production also had a French horn part, a viola and cello part, a second guitar, and had three woodwind parts instead of two. The first reed part doubled on alto sax, clarinet, flute, piccolo, and pennywhistle; the second part doubled on clarinet, flute, oboe, English horn, and tenor sax; the third doubled on flute, clarinet, bass clarinet, bassoon, and baritone sax.

Production history

Broadway (2007-2008)

After a tryout at San Francisco's Golden Gate Theatre from February 6 to February 25, 2007, following previews from January 23, Legally Blonde opened on Broadway at the Palace Theatre on April 29, 2007, following previews from April 3. The production was directed and choreographed by Jerry Mitchell, with set design by David Rockwell, costume design by Gregg Barnes, and lighting design by Kenneth Posner and Paul Miller. The original Broadway cast included Laura Bell Bundy in the lead role of Elle Woods and featured Christian Borle, Orfeh and Michael Rupert.^[5] The show received mostly positive reviews and was nominated for seven Tony Awards, including Best Original Score and Best Leading Actress in a Musical, but failed to win any.^[6]

During the week ending June 24, 2007, the Broadway production achieved a milestone, joining the millionaires' club for weekly Broadway grosses, by grossing $1,003,282.^[7] The musical was filmed for television in front of a live audience on September 18, 2007, as well as two other dates where it was filmed without an audience. The three performances edited together were broadcast on MTV on October 13 and 14, 2007 with subsequent air dates on November 3 and 14, 2007.^[8] MTV's involvement with the musical continued with a reality show program called Legally Blonde – The Musical: The Search for Elle Woods, which aimed to cast the next actress to play Elle Woods on Broadway, replacing Laura Bell Bundy. The show was hosted by Haylie Duff, and premiered on June 2, 2008 on MTV.^[9] The competition was won by Bailey Hanks, age 20, from Anderson, South Carolina.^[10] The results were first aired on July 21, 2008 on MTV,^[11] and her debut as Elle Woods was on July 23.^[10] The runner-up, Autumn Hurlbert, also debuted on Broadway in this show as a sorority sister in Delta Nu, as well as serving as Hanks' understudy.^[12]

The production closed on October 19, 2008 after playing 30 previews and 595 regular performances.^[12]

North American Tours (2008-2011)

First National US Tour The first national tour started on September 21, 2008.^[13] Becky Gulsvig, who appeared in the ensemble of the original Broadway cast and understudied the role of Elle Woods, is featured as Elle Woods.^[14] Lauren Ashley Zakrin and Rhiannon Hansen, both finalists of the MTV reality show, appeared in the national tour.^[13] The original tour closed on August 15, 2010 in Vienna, Virginia at the Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts.

Second National US Tour After the first US National Equity Tour ended, the tour closed for a few months and reopened with an all new non-equity cast. The tour launched in Jackson, Mississippi on September 21, 2010. Nikki Bohne led the cast as Elle Woods, with Nic Rouleau (Emmett Forrest), Jillian Wallach (Paulette), Hannah Rose DeFlumeri (Vivienne Kensington), and Kahlil Joseph (Professor Callahan).^[15] The tour closed on May 15, 2011 at the Shubert Theatre in New Haven, Connecticut.^[16]

West End (2009-2012)

The West End production opened at the Savoy Theatre on January 13, 2010, following previews from December 5, 2009.^[17][18] The original London cast included Sheridan Smith in the lead role of Elle Woods, with Duncan James, Alex Gaumond, Jill Halfpenny and Peter Davison.^[19] In the London production, the lyrics to Ireland were changed.^[20]

In October 2009, Sheridan Smith, with other cast members, recorded a pop video to the song "So Much Better".^[21] The West End cast of Legally Blonde performed a medley from the show at the BBC Television Center on November 19, 2009 during the Children in Need telethon.^[22]

Legally Blonde was the first West End show to offer a ticket lottery. The trend is popular on Broadway but had never been used for a West End production.^[23] The show had taken $2 million in advance sales before it officially opened.^[24] It extended its booking period from the earlier date of October 2011 until the March 31, 2012.

Susan McFadden, who was an Irish actress, replaced Sheridan Smith as Elle on January 10, 2011. McFadden was later replaced by Carley Stenson on July 11, 2011. Other notable replacements included Richard Fleeshman, Simon Thomas and Ben Freeman as Warner, Denise Van Outen, Natalie Casey and Sorelle Marsh as Paulette, Lee Mead and Stephen Ashfield as Emmett, Carley Stenson and Ellie Kirk as Margot and Siobhan Dillon as Vivienne.^[25]

The West End show won three Laurence Olivier Awards on March 13, 2011 - 'Best New Musical', 'Best Actress in a Musical' (Sheridan Smith), and 'Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical' (Jill Halfpenny). The show began a UK tour in Liverpool in July 2011. The show has had more success in the UK than it achieved in the USA, with the London production being one of the most popular shows in the West End.

The show closed in London on April 7, 2012,^[26][27] after 974 performances, significantly more than it played on Broadway.

First National UK tour

The first UK tour began on July 8, 2011 at The Liverpool Empire Theatre. The cast included Faye Brooks as Elle, Dave Willetts as Professor Callahan, Iwan Lewis as Emmett, Neil Toon as Warner, Charlotte Harwood as Vivienne, Hannah Grover as Brooke, Sophie Isaacs as Margot, Sinead Long as Serena, Micha Richardson as Pilar and Lori Barker as Judge/Saleswoman. Two celebrities from Liverpool shared the role of Elle's friend, Paulette. From July 8 to September 17 the role was played by former Atomic Kitten member Liz McClarnon, and from September 20 to December 3 by Claire Sweeney.^[28]

Following Willets, Professor Callahan was played by Matthew Kelly, and later Les Dennis, alongside Niki Evans as Paulette. Due to more dates being added to the initial ones listed, and several members of the cast having other commitments, especially with the Les Miserable film, some of the main roles in the show were covered by former London cast members. Amy Lennox (former 1st understudy Elle) covered Faye Brookes as Elle for the Aberdeen leg of the tour, with Stephen Ashfield reprising Emmett just weeks after leaving the show in London, covering Dublin, Belfast and Woking. Andy Mace (original understudy Callahan) covered Callahan in Dublin, before taking over full-time in July. Other cast changes include Tracey Penn taking over as Vivienne and Antony Hewitt as Carlos.

On the 17th July 2012, Jennifer Ellison replaced Niki Evans as Paulette and Gareth Gates replaced Ray Quinn as Warner.

The final show of the UK tour was performed at the New Wimbledon Theatre on 6 October 2012.

Australian Production 2012

The Australian production began previews in September 2012 at the Lyric Theatre, Sydney, before opening on October 4, 2012.

Joining Lucy Durack in the lead role, are her fellow Wicked co-stars Rob Mills (as Warner) and David Harris (as Emmett). Supermodel Erika Heynatz will make her musical theatre debut as Brooke Wyndham, with Cameron Daddo returning to the Australian stage for the first time in 20 years to play Professor Callahan. ^[29]

The production concluded its run at Melbourne's Princess Theatre on July 14, 2013.^[30] The show won five Helpmann Awards including Best Musical.^[31]

International Productions

Legally Blonde has had international productions in South Korea, The Netherlands, France, The Philippines, Sweden, and Finland.^{[32][33][34][35]} An Austrian Production "NATÜRLICH BLOND" opened at the Ronacher in February 2013 (A German Language Premiere).^[36]

In July 2013 it was presented in Spanish in the Dominican Republic at the Teatro Nacional (Santo Domingo) with an stellar cast of Dominican actors and singers than included Akari Endo as Elle Woods, Hector Anibal Estrella as Emmett, Jose Julio Sanchez as Warner, Laura Lebron as Vivienne, Jose Lora (Checho) as Prof. Callahan and Laura Rivera from the Dominican rock band "Tribu del Sol" as Paulette. It was produced by Jose Rafael Reyes, directed by Gracielina Olivero and choreographed by Benny Perez. Luichy Guzman was the musical director and Claudia Gonzalez the vocal director.^[37] In January 2014 this production was nominated for 4 Soberano Award that included: Best Musical, Best Actress (Akari Endo), Best Actor (Hector Anibal Estrella) and Best Choreographer (Benny Perez).^[38]

In November 2013, Orpheus Musical Theatre Society of Ottawa (one of Canada's oldest theatre organizations, starting in 1906) will produce a community theatre production of the show at Centrepointe Theatre.

The first French-Canadian professional production of the show will play at Quebec City's Capitole de Québec in May 2014. Produced by Les Productions du Quatrième Mur, the casting will be announced in the summer of 2013. The show is expected to play an initial two-weeks run. The direction will be by Guylaine Pépin and the choreography will be by Jérôme Tremblay.^[39]

The first Panamanian production started on July 2013 with Isabeau Mendez as the lead role in Panama City's Teatro en Circulo.

Brazil's replica production is set to start its run early 2015 in São Paulo.

The Mexican version opened at Teatro Carlos Lazo in October 2015. Presented by Britstudio Artes Escénicas.

Casts

The principal original casts of the major productions of Legally Blonde.

Character	Original Broadway Cast[40]	Closing Broadway Cast	Original U.S. Tour Cast[41]	Original London Cast[19]	Original Non-Equity Cast[42]	Original UK Tour Cast[43]
Elle Woods	Laura Bell Bundy	Bailey Hanks	Becky Gulsvig	Sheridan Smith	Nikki Bohne	Faye Brookes
Emmett Forrest	Christian Borle		D.B. Bonds	Alex Gaumond	Nic Rouleau	Iwan Lewis
Paulette Bonafonté	Orfeh		Natalie Joy Johnson	Jill Halfpenny	Jillian Wallach	Liz McClarnon Claire Sweeney
Professor Callahan	Michael Rupert		Ken Land	Peter Davison	Kahlil Joseph	Dave Willetts
Warner Huntington III	Richard H. Blake		Jeff Mclean	Duncan James	Matthew Ragas	Neil Toon
Vivienne Kensington	Kate Shindle		Megan Lewis	Caroline Keiff	Hannah Rose DeFlumeri	Charlotte Harwood
Chad/Dewey/Kyle	Andy Karl		Ven Daniel	Chris Ellis-Stanton	Michael Milton	Lewis Griffiths
Brooke Wyndham	Nikki Snelson	Nicolette Hart	Coleen Sexton	Aoife Mulholland	Shannon Mullen	Hannah Grover
Enid Hoopes	Natalie Joy Johnson		Gretchen Burghart	Suzie McAdam	Sarah Beth Pfeifer	Gemma Baird
Serena	Leslie Kritzer	Tracy Jai Edwards	Cortney Wolfson	Susan McFadden	Nadia Vynnytsky	Sinead Long
Margot	Annaleigh Ashford	Kate Rockwell	Rhiannon Hansen	Amy Lennox	Maggie Taylor	Sophie Isaacs
Pilar	DeQuina Moore	Asmeret Ghebremichael	Crystal Joy	Ibinabo Jack	Brit West	Micha Richardson
Kate/Chutney	Kate Wetherhead	Lindsay Nicole Chambers	Alex Ellis	Roxanne Palmer	Nicole Brancucci	Nia Jermin

• The cast for the TV airing, filmed in mid-September 2007,^[44] consisted of the entire original Broadway cast, except for Tracy Jai Edwards taking over for Leslie Kritzer as Serena and Asmeret Ghebremichael replacing DeQuina Moore as Pilar. Moore departed from the production in July 2007,^[45][46] and Kritzer in August that same year.^[46]

Critical response

The musical received mixed reviews but was praised for being a fun and upbeat production. Ben Brantley, reviewing the musical in The New York Times, wrote that the show was a "high-energy, empty-calories, and expensive-looking hymn to the glories of girlishness"; he praised Laura Bell Bundy saying, "she sings and dances flawlessly, and she delivers silly lines as if she meant them."^[47] Clive Barnes, in his New York Post review, wrote that he loved the "effervescent and radiant Bundy" as well as others in the cast, and that the "dances certainly have a slick snap, crackle, and pop".^[48] Elysa Gardner in the USA Today wrote that the musical was an "ingratiating trifle", and the "game cast ensure that the proceedings, however patronizing, aren't irritating."^[49] Jeremy McCarter in New York Magazine wrote that the musical unfortunately "doesn’t summon memories of Tracy Flick, the steely student-council campaigner that Reese Witherspoon played in Election before starring in Legally Blonde.^[50]

The West End production received mostly positive reviews. Benedict Nightingale in The Times wrote "Let's overlook some forgettable tunes and welcome dance that embraces everything from skipping with ropes to spoof Riverdance. Let's relish the support both of a fake-Greek chorus dressed as cheerleaders and of two cute, unnaturally obedient dogs. Let's agree that Legally Blonde is, well, fun".^[51] whilst Paul Taylor for The Independent wrote "Ridiculously enjoyable from start to finish."

The show also received some negative criticism. Tim Walker wrote in the Sunday Telegraph: "It is a great big empty vessel of a show that makes a lot of noise and not much else, and would have been better entitled 'Irredeemably Bland'. I was aware that for the whole of the two hours and 25 minutes that it ran, I was sitting among a group of people with vacant smiles on faces that otherwise seemed entirely numbed. That was how I looked, too. It is the expression that registers when what one is seeing doesn't entirely sync with what is going on in one's brain." Quentin Letts wrote for Daily Mail, "It is pink not just in the colour of many of the clothes and stage effects. It is pink to the core of its little, tiny soul ... The plot is pap, the musical unmemorable, the dancing often hefty except for one routine with skipping ropes."^[51]

Recordings

The Original Broadway Cast recording was recorded on May 7 and 8, 2007 and released on July 17, 2007 by Ghostlight Records (an imprint of Sh-K-Boom Records). During the week of July 23, 2007, the cast album made its debut on Billboard's Cast Album chart, placing at #1 and charted at #86 on the Billboard 200.^[52]

Before previews, a promotional sampler CD was released featuring "Omigod You Guys", "So Much Better", and "Take It Like a Man", featuring a slightly divergent cast, arrangement and lyrics of that of the final show's.^[53]

During the development phase of the musical, a demo recording was released with twelve songs featuring Kerry Butler and others as Elle. The demo featured workshop versions of "There! Right There!" (labelled on the sampler as "Gay or European"), "Blood in the Water", "Omigod You Guys", "Serious", "What You Want", "Legally Blonde", "Legally Blonde Remix", "So Much Better", "Take It Like a Man", in addition to two songs not present in the finalized version of the show, "Beacon of Positivity" (which would become "Love and War" for the previews and eventually "Positive" for the finalized version of the show), and "Good Boy", a song in the place of "Ireland".^[54]

Bailey Hanks, who won the reality show The Search For Elle Woods, recorded the song "So Much Better", which was released as a single on July 22, 2008.^[11]

It was announced on May 21, 2010 that a new live London cast recording would be recorded featuring Sheridan Smith, Alex Gaumond and Duncan James. It was recorded live on June 12, 13 and 14 that same year. It was released on August 16, 2010.^[55] The London Cast Recording used the same track listing as the Broadway Cast Recording, with bonus tracks "Kyle the Magnificent" and the curtain call music added to the digital download version.^[56]

Awards and nominations

Original Broadway production

Year	Award Ceremony	Category	Nominee	Result
2007	Actors’ Equity Association	Outstanding Broadway Chorus		Won
	Drama Desk Award	Outstanding Musical		Nominated
		Outstanding Book of a Musical	Heather Hach	Nominated
		Outstanding Actress in a Musical	Laura Bell Bundy	Nominated
		Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical	Christian Borle	Nominated
		Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical	Orfeh	Nominated
		Outstanding Choreography	Jerry Mitchell	Nominated
		Outstanding Director of a Musical		Nominated
		Outstanding Lyrics	Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin	Nominated
		Outstanding Music		Nominated
		Outstanding Set Design of a Musical	David Rockwell	Nominated
	Drama League Award	Distinguished Production of a Musical		Nominated
		Distinguished Performance	Laura Bell Bundy	Nominated
			Christian Borle	Nominated
	Outer Critics Circle Award	Best Featured Actress in a Musical	Orfeh	Nominated
	Tony Award	Best Book of a Musical	Heather Hach	Nominated
		Best Original Score	Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin	Nominated
		Best Performance by an Actress in a Lead Role in a Musical	Laura Bell Bundy	Nominated
		Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical	Christian Borle	Nominated
		Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical	Orfeh	Nominated
		Best Choreography	Jerry Mitchell	Nominated
		Best Costume Design of a Musical	Gregg Barnes	Nominated
2008	Daytime Emmy Award[57] (for the televised version)	Outstanding Special Class Directing	Beth McCarthy-Miller	Nominated
		Outstanding Special Class Special		Nominated

North American Tour

Year	Award Ceremony	Category	Nominee	Result
2009	Helen Hayes Award[58]	Outstanding Performance in a Non-Resident Production	Becky Gulsvig	Nominated
	Touring Broadway Awards		Best New Touring Musical	Won
		Best Design of a Touring Production		Won
		Best Choreography of a Touring Production	Jerry Mitchell	Won

Original West End production

Year	Award Ceremony	Category	Nominee	Result
2010	Evening Standard Theatre Awards	Best Musical		Nominated
		Best Actress	Sheridan Smith	Nominated
2011	Laurence Olivier Award[59]	Best New Musical		Won
		Best Actor in a Musical	Alex Gaumond	Nominated
		Best Actress in a Musical	Sheridan Smith	Won
		Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical	Jill Halfpenny	Won
		Best Theatre Choreographer	Jerry Mitchell	Nominated
	Theatregoers’ Choice Awards[60]	Best New Musical		Won
		Best Actor in a Musical	Alex Gaumond	Nominated
		Best Actress in a Musical	Sheridan Smith	Won
		Best Supporting Actor in a Musical	Chris Ellis-Stanton	Nominated
		Best Supporting Actress in a Musical	Jill Halfpenny	Won
		Best Takeover in a Role	Denise van Outen	Nominated
		Best Choreographer	Jerry Mitchell	Won
2012		Best Takeover in a Role	Susan McFadden	Nominated

References

External links

Wikiquote has quotations related to: Legally Blonde (musical)

• Official website
• Official Australia Website
• Official UK Website
• Legally Blonde at the Internet Broadway Database
• Legally Blonde: The Musical at the Music Theatre International website
• New York Times review

Legally Blonde by Amanda Brown Films Legally Blonde Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde Legally Blondes Musical Legally Blonde (musical) Legally Blonde – The Musical: The Search for Elle Woods Characters Elle Woods

Helpmann Award for Best Musical (2001–2020) The Boy from Oz (2001) Mamma Mia! (2002) Cabaret (2003) The Lion King (2004) The Producers (2005) The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (2006) Keating! (2007) Billy Elliot the Musical (2008) Wicked (2009) Jersey Boys (2010) Mary Poppins (2011) A Chorus Line (2012) Legally Blonde (2013) The King and I (2014) Les Misérables (2015) Complete list (2001–2020)

Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical (2001–2025) Merrily We Roll Along (2001) Our House (2003) Jerry Springer: The Opera (2004) The Producers (2005) Billy Elliot (2006) Caroline, or Change (2007) Hairspray (2008) Jersey Boys (2009) Spring Awakening (2010) Legally Blonde (2011) Matilda the Musical (2012) Top Hat (2013) The Book of Mormon (2014) Sunny Afternoon (2015) Complete list (1976–2000) (2001–2025)