<span class="SFPTagline"> From SCIFIPEDIA </span>

A musical is a dramatic work (often a comedy) in which the story is advanced through the characters singing songs, although dialogue is also used.

Traditionally, an opera is entirely sung, a "straight play" does not use lyrics as part of the plot, and a musical bridges the two.

Given the unnatural nature of the medium, it is not a surprise that many of the most successful musicals have involved fantasy elements. On Broadway, Damn Yankees, The Wiz, Avenue Q, Monty Python's Spamalot, Cats and The Lion King have all won Tony Awards for best musical.

In the movies, Disney animation has been one of the most prominent sources of fantasy musicals. Other famous examples include the 1939 version of The Wizard of Oz and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

Television has featured occasional musical fantasy specials (Mary Martin and Danny Kaye have appeared in different adaptations of Peter Pan, for example). Some television series have also included musical fantasy episodes and sequences (including The Flinstones).

Not all musicals are huge successes, of course. 1966's Musical of Steel, It's A Bird...It's a Plane...It's Superman ran for only a few months.

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