Miracle on 34th Street is often cited as one of the greatest Christmas movies ever made. If nothing else, it has the best Santa Claus.
Last year, when I introduced Here We Come a Carolling, I opened with a look at Christmas songs from musicals that weren't exactly about Christmas. However Les inspired me as he mentioned that the song, It's Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas came from the musical, Here's Love. Well, I decided to check this out for myself and found that this show was an adaption of a Christmas great.
Therefore, I figured I would tap into a well that we are both fans of, musical theater. I knew that this would be the most fun for me to do. I'll admit that I opened did this on the Superman ABC musical but I couldn't get through ten minutes of that. And this has more of the holiday spirit anyways. With that outta the way, let's begin.
Here's a playlist of the songs as they're easier to find that way. With that outta the way, let's get started.
The Big Clown Balloons
This opening number is a bit simple but it sets up the parade rather well and also does a great job of tying into the film's intro and the warm feeling that comes when watching this movie.
Arm in Arm
This is a cute number that expresses the love that Doris and Susan have for one another. Now, from what I've read one change that was made regarding this adaption is that it was moved from the '40s to '60s. Which while single parenting is even more common now than it was during that era, I think the forties setting made it stand out a bit more. I think it's one of those things where a movie that came out in the past retroactively becomes a period piece. Still, cute and very endearing to the audience.
You Don't Know
This number is such a heartbreaking piece from Doris. Sadly, the synopsis for this isn't that great but I imagine this being sung to Susan about how hard the real world can be and how it'll break your heart sometimes.
The Bugle
This is perhaps one of my favorite songs from this show. It encapsulates what I think is one of the most important of Miracle.
Kris showing that he can under this little Dutch girl by singing a song with her in her language speaks to the magic that is found in this season and the goodness of people like Kris that want to help others. And this song captures that, in both versions, Kris wants to make sure every child has a wonderful Christmas no matter the barrier and well if that isn't tear-inducing, I don't know what is.
Here's Love
The title song is just okay. It sounds more like a jingle than an actual song and perhaps that is what they were going for but it doesn't completely work for me. Something about it just falls flat about it. It's not bad as there isn't a bad song in the bunch (of those that were on YouTube.) But it's there and that's all I can say about it.
My Wish
Mr. Gailey suffers the most in this adaption. This song with Susan is nice and sentimental and feels li the most like who Gailey was in the movie. Because sure, he was a bit brash and different from Doris but just as much as Kris, he helped the Walkers to believe. The Gailey in this musical doesn't come off that way. We will discuss that with his next set of songs but something about them just hasn't aged well.
Pine Cones and Holly Berries
This is another sweet song that includes traces of an iconic Christmas song (oddly the OBC version of that song is not YouTube). This is perhaps the first Christmassy song of the bunch but it works really well as it's just so warm and comforting like any good Christmas song should be.
Look Little Girl/Look Little Girl (Reprise)
Like I was saying, Gailey suffered a lot in this adaption. I get that this debuted in a different time but frankly, Gailey, as presented in the musical, comes off a bit gross. I wouldn't go so far as to say sexist but I dunno, it feels like the original Gailey had more respect for women than what I've heard in this musical. The reprise as sung by Doris is nice and feels more genuine than Gailey's original song. Still, not the strongest piece but rather good.
Expect Things to Happen
Another great Christmas number that has a warm and fuzzy feeling that more than makes up for the last song just rubbing me the wrong way. I could see adding this and The Bugle to my Christmas Broadway playlist next year as they are some of the best Christmas songs I've never heard before.
She Hadda Go Back
Again, this is just another song that hasn't aged well. It's not as bad as Look Little Girl but it's just irritating and feels a little dudebro-ish. It doesn't take me out as much as Gailey's previous song but I can't say I care for it.
That Man Over There
I love this number and strangely, it reminds me of a song from The Flintstones Family Christmas where Fred sings about seeing a Santa on every corner of Bedrock. Though, I think this song is a bit better than that number. Again, another I think I would love to add to Christmas rotation.
My State
This is a decent number that is very enjoyable but not as strong as previous entries. Good but not great and that's all I really have to say about it.
Finale
The finale is a reprise of That Man Over There and I think that's a good way to close out this show.
My Final Thoughts
The original movie is infinitely better but this isn't a bad adaption. It's at best a mixed bag that has some really good numbers but others that just don't hold up in today's society. In all, I'm glad that I was able to discover these songs from a musical based on a Christmas classic. And I would love to see this onstage some time in the future. Les, I hope that you enjoyed this and well, here's a Superman holiday image.
