Overview
Synopsis
A child鈥檚 train set magically comes to life while he sleeps and the various engines compete to become the 鈥淔astest engine in the World!鈥� The underdog, Rusty the Steam train, dreams of becoming the champion but he is belittled by Greaseball, an arrogant diesel train, and Electra, the new electric engine. Encouraged by Poppa, an aging steam train, he turns to the legend of the 鈥淪tarlight Express鈥� and begs for her help. With her assistance, Rusty realizes that he already has the power to win deep inside himself. He ultimately defeats his archrivals Greaseball and Electra, winning the heart of the lovely first class coach, Pearl, who is waiting for her dream train. Performed entirely on roller skates, Starlight Express is a visual and aural explosion of the senses.
Show Information
- Music
- Andrew Lloyd Webber
- Lyrics
- Richard Stilgoe , Don Black
- Category
- Musical
- Age Guidance
- Youth (Y)/General Audiences (G)
- Number of Acts
- 2
- First Produced
- 1984
- Genres
- Fairy Tale/Fantasy
- Settings
- Fantasy/Imaginary, Unit/Single Set
- Time & Place
- The World Championship Railroad Race (as imagined by a young boy)
- Cast Size
- large
- Orchestra Size
- Small
- Dancing
- Heavy
- Licensor
- Ideal For
- College/University, Professional Theatre, Regional Theatre, High School, Diverse Cast, Mostly Male Cast, Includes Late Teen, Young Adult, Adult, Mature Adult, Child Characters, Large Cast
Context
One of the first megamusicals, Starlight Express opened on March 27th 1984 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre in London鈥檚 West End. The original production was directed by Trevor Nunn, with choreography by Arlene Phillips, and received two Olivier Award nominations, including Best Musical. The theatre was adapted to build an in-house race track that extended into and around the stalls, and around the front of the circle. The show ran for over 17 years, totalling 7,406 performances. It is
to read the context for Starlight Express and to unlock other amazing theatre resources!Plot
Act One
Late in the evening, a child is playing with his toy trains. He takes the role of 鈥淐ontrol鈥� and sets up a championship race to decide which of his trains is 鈥渢he fastest in the world鈥�. While he is playing, he falls asleep. But in his dreams, the championship begins鈥�
Control introduces the engines: Ruhrgold (a German intercontinental express), Turnov (a Trans-Siberian Express from Russia), Nintendo (a Bullet Train from Japan), the Prince of Wales (a 鈥渇rightfully British鈥� Royal
to read the plot for Starlight Express and to unlock other amazing theatre resources!Characters
| Name | Part Size | Gender | Vocal Part |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Lead |
Male |
Tenor |
|
|
Lead |
Female |
Soprano, Mezzo-Soprano |
|
|
Supporting |
Male |
Baritone, Tenor |
|
|
Supporting |
Male |
Baritone |
|
|
Supporting |
Female |
Mezzo-Soprano, Alto |
|
|
Supporting |
Female |
Mezzo-Soprano, Alto |
|
|
Supporting |
Male |
Tenor |
|
|
Supporting |
Female |
Mezzo-Soprano, Alto |
|
|
Featured |
Male |
Tenor, Baritone, Bass |
|
|
Featured |
Either Gender |
Soprano, Mezzo-Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Baritone, Bass |
|
|
Featured |
Male |
Tenor, Baritone, Bass |
|
|
Featured |
Male |
Tenor, Baritone |
|
|
Featured |
Male |
Tenor, Baritone, Bass |
|
|
Featured |
Male |
Tenor, Baritone, Bass |
|
|
Featured |
Male |
Non-singer |
Songs
Act One
- Overture - Orchestra
- 鈥淓ntry of National Trains鈥� - Control
- 鈥淩olling Stock鈥� - Greaseball, Company
- 鈥淎fter Rolling Stock鈥� - Rusty, Greaseball, Nintendo, Ruhrgold, Turnov, Control, Dinah, Buffy, Duvay, Pearl, Company
- 鈥淩usty Cannot be Serious鈥� - Duvay, Buffy, Dinah, Pearl, Company
- 鈥淎 Whole Lotta Locomotion鈥� - Control, Dinah, Buffy, Duvay, Pearl
- 鈥淗e鈥檒l Whistle at Me鈥� - Pearl, Coaches
- 鈥淔reight鈥� - Dinah, Buffy, Pearl, Duvay, Trucks, Control, Hip Hoppers, Flat Top, Caboose, Dustin, Greaseball, Nintendo, Ruhrgold, Turnov, Company
- 鈥淎C/DC鈥� - Electra, Components
- 鈥淧umping Iron鈥� - Dinah, Buffy, Duvay, Pearl, Greaseball, Hip Hoppers, Components
- 鈥淐oda of Freight鈥� - Company
- 鈥淐razy鈥� - Rusty, Coaches, Pearl
- 鈥淧earl, You鈥檝e Been Honored鈥� - Purse, Rusty, Pearl
- 鈥淢ake Up My Heart鈥� - Pearl, Rusty
- 鈥淩ace One鈥� - Control, Greaseball, Ruhrgold, Electra
- 鈥淧oppa鈥檚 Blues鈥� - Poppa, Hip Hoppers, Flat Top, Dustin
- 鈥淎fter Blues鈥� - Poppa, Rusty, Hip Hoppers, Flat Top, Dustin
- 鈥淪tarlight Short鈥� - Poppa, Control, Hip Hoppers, Rusty, Flat Top, Dustin
- 鈥淩ace Two鈥� - Poppa, Control, Nintendo, Turnov
- 鈥淟aughing Stock鈥� - Rusty, Dustin, Poppa, Greaseball & Gang, Flat Top, Hip Hoppers, Caboose, Dustin, Electra, Pearl
- 鈥淪tarlight Express鈥� - Rusty
Act Two
- 鈥淭he Rap鈥� - Hip Hoppers, Control, Electra, Components, Greaseball, Caboose, Dinah
- 鈥淯.狈.颁.翱.鲍.笔.尝.贰.顿.鈥� - Dinah
- 鈥淕irls鈥� Rolling Stock鈥� - Buffy, Duvay, Dinah
- 鈥淒inah You鈥檙e Honored鈥� - Purse, Dinah, Buffy, Duvay, Caboose, Greaseball
- 鈥淩ace Three鈥� - Control, Greaseball, Electra, Rusty
- 鈥淭errorizing Rusty鈥� - Greaseball & Gang, Electra, Caboose, Flat Top, Rusty, Pearl
- 鈥淩ight Place, Right Time鈥� - Rusty, Hip Hoppers
- 鈥淩usty Alone鈥� - Rusty
- 鈥淪tarlight Sequence鈥� - Rusty, Starlight
- 鈥淩usty and Dustin鈥� - Rusty, Dustin
- 鈥淒inah鈥檚 Disco鈥� - Dinah, Electra, Caboose, Control
- 鈥淧re-Race Four鈥� - Greaseball, Pearl, Electra, Caboose, Rusty, Dustin, Company
- 鈥淩ace Four鈥� - Control
- 鈥淥ne Rock 鈥榥鈥� Roll Too Many鈥� - Electra, Greaseball, Caboose
- 鈥淎fter Rock 鈥榥鈥� Roll鈥� - Control, Poppa, Dustin
- 鈥淚 Do鈥� - Pearl, Rusty
- 鈥淟ong Live Rusty鈥� - Dinah, Greaseball, Electra, Company
- 鈥淟ight at the End of the Tunnel鈥� - Poppa, Company
- 鈥淢egamix鈥� - Company
A song with an asterisk (*) before the title indicates a dance number; a character listed in a song with an asterisk (*) by the character's name indicates that the character exclusively serves as a dancer in this song, which is sung by other characters.
Monologues
Scenes
Key Terms
A musical where a theme, metaphor or concept is just as important as the overarching plot and the featured songs.
A large-scale musical produced for large commercial profit.
Videos
Quizzes
Themes, Symbols & Motifs
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Quote Analysis
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Guide Written By:
Alexandra Appleton
Writer, editor and theatre researcher