For decades, playwrights have been turning beautiful films into magnificent stage adaptations.

Films such as “Hairspray,” “Mamma Mia” and “Monty Python and the Holy Grail” have all recently landed their theater debut. Disney has also been trying out this new idea with “Beauty and the Beast,” “Aladdin,” “The Lion King” and many more of their prestigious children’s movies.

Many of the musicals are based on films that already have music that the characters sing to one of which being “The Wizard of Oz.” The 1939 musical film starring Judy Garland as Dorothy Gale, “The Wizard of Oz” has encouraged the creation of various theater productions and was developed into a musical in 2011. Another example is “Wicked,” which is based on the book by Gregory Maguire. “Wicked” tells the untold story of the Wicked Witch of the West through a very different perspective. “Wicked” first opened on Broadway in 2003 and won three Tony Awards.

Some movies that do not contain music have also been transformed into musicals.  “Heathers,” a 1988 cult classic starring Winona Ryder as Veronica Sawyer and Christian Slater as Jason Dean, was recently transformed into a musical in 2014. Many of the lines were taken directly from the script of the film. Laurence O’Keefe and Kevin Murphy wrote the music and lyrics specifically for the new musical. The show includes many vibrant costumes for the Heathers and Veronica to keep the audience enthralled. In the off-broadway version, Barrett Wilbert Weed starred as Veronica Sawyer and Ryan McCartan played Jason Dean.

This idea of taking movies and adapting them for the stage can have positive and negative responses. For example, “Newsies,” the 1992 Disney movie flopped in the box office when it was first released. In 2012, the stage adaptation became a huge hit and earned two Tony Awards in the same year. Many people who saw the show watched the film afterwards and are now wondering if there will be a remake in the future.

However, this transition does not work for every movie. In 2011, a new musical opened on Broadway. It was “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark” and it ran for two and a half years. Throughout the Broadway previews and performances many accidents happened. One actor fell onto the stage while performing an aerial act. A different actor, Chris Tierney, fell off of the stage and into the pit, breaking several ribs and fracturing bones in his elbows and skull. Natalie Mendoza, one of the lead actresses, suffered a concussion due to a flying piece of equipment. Many actors were rushed to the emergency room during dress rehearsals and shows. In the end, the $70 million budget was almost a waste.

Despite this, the trend seems to be working. Playwrights all across the world have been taking films and turning them into amazing musicals.