Legally Blonde (2007)

Legally Blonde was a musical I missed the first time around.  Even though I’d enjoyed the movie well enough when it first came out, I wasn’t in the right state of mind for the musical when it came along a handful of years later.  It was part of a crop of relatively-modern movies-turned-musicals, and quasi-Broadway-snob that I am, I wasn’t prepared to give it a chance.  Luckily, a regional theatre I frequent performed it this season, and I took the overdue opportunity to discover what an enjoyable show it really is.

Malibu sorority girl Elle Woods is shocked to be dumped by her boyfriend as he prepares for Harvard Law, citing that he needs a more “serious” girl to fit his vision for his future.  Determined not to be counted out, Elle works her way into Harvard Law as well in the hopes of winning him back.  Along the way, she faces classmates and professors who doubt her ability to hack it and, as she works to prove them wrong, discovers a passion for law she didn’t know she had.

While I’d had cynical reactions to a lot of recent musicals adapted from movies, Legally Blonde really is one I should’ve given a shot to earlier.  Like Bring It On (penned by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Tom Kitt,) it comes from good composing pedigree, with music by Laurence O’Keefe.  His Bat Boy was one of the earliest musicals I adored, and I missed out on a great, catchy score for a number of years because I side-eyed the source material’s fitness for a musical.  Tons of earwormy songs here, with accessible melodies and clever lyrics to go with them.  In particular, I love the titualar “Legally Blonde,” the opening number “Oh My God, You Guys,” and the Act I closer “Better.”

I also just enjoy the themes the show explores (many of which, I’m sure, are also present in the movie, but I’m better able to recognize them as an adult instead of a young teen.)  While there are of courses “shallow Valley girl” jokes juxtaposing Elle against her more laser-focused Harvard classmates, it’s not just about a ditzy blonde.  It’s about a young woman who’s incredibly driven – even if, initially, she’s doing it to impress a guy, she gets herself into Harvard to do it, so she’s no slouch – a woman learning what she really values, what she wants and how to get it.  She needs to apply herself and take law school as seriously as she takes getting Warner back, but what she doesn’t need to do is change who she fundamentally is.  I appreciate that, that Elle can be fashion-obsessed and a hard worker, hyperfeminine and a tough lawer.  Too often, femininity is seen as imcompatible with strength, but the two aren’t mutually exclusive.

The cast on the original Broadway cast recording are all very good, with some familiar voices in the mix.  Laura Bell Bundy (Amber from Hairspray) plays Elle with humor and heart, and the cast features, not one, but two Marvins from Falsettos.  The original Marvin, Michael Rupert, plays Elle’s demanding professor, while revival-Marvin Christian Borle is Emmett, Elle’s big ally in the program.

Warnings

Sexual references (including sexual harassment,) alcohol references, and some thematic elements.