Starmania is a Canadian-French rock opera written in 1976 with music by Michel Berger and book and lyrics by Luc Plamondon.
It debuted in 1978 with a studio recording of the songs, before premiering on stage in 1979.
An English-language studio version was also produced in 1992, with lyrics by Sir Tim Rice. Several stage revivals have been produced in France, Quebec and Germany, each with their distinctive styles.
Several of its songs have passed into mainstream Francophone pop culture, and helped original cast members Daniel Balavoine and Diane Dufresne to rise in popularity in France; it is now considered the most famous rock opera in French history.
Origins and development
Michel Berger was inspired by the Patty Hearst kidnapping.
In 1978, its first recording was released (in French), sub-titled Starmania, ou la passion de Johnny Rockfort selon les évangiles télévisés ("Starmania, or the Passion of Johnny Rockfort According to the Televised Gospels"), with the leading roles filled by Daniel Balavoine (Johnny Rockfort), Claude Dubois (Zéro Janvier), Diane Dufresne (Stella Spotlight), Nanette Workman (Sadia), France Gall (Cristal), Eric Esteve (Ziggy), and Fabienne Thibeault (Marie-Jeanne).
In 1979 the show was given its theatrical debut in Paris, starring Balavoine, Dufresne, Gall, Dufresne, and Thibeault, as well as new cast members Etienne Chicot, Gregory Ken and Rody Julienne.
Later productions
The 1979 Paris run was followed by Canadian productions in 1980 and 1986 and French revivals in 1988 and throughout the 1990s.
The 1980 Canadian production had a cast that included France Castel, Louise Forestier, Gilles Valiquette, and Martine St-Clair.
Celine Dion recorded several songs from the musical on her 1991 album Dion chante Plamondon.
A German-language adaptation of the 1988 production was played in Essen in 1991–1992.
In 1992, an English version of the show was created with the release of the album Tycoon, with lyrics by Tim Rice, and starring Kim Carnes, Celine Dion, Nina Hagen, Peter Kingsbery, Cyndi Lauper, Willy Deville, Kevin Robinson and Tom Jones in the principal roles on the recording. A stage version was announced in the press on several occasions, but never materialized.
In 1993, a new French production, directed by Canadian prodigy Lewis Furey, debuted in Paris at the Mogador theatre. For a few months in 1993–94, a version of Tycoon (with re-worked and expanded lyrics) alternated with the French version, using the same actors and staging.
In 2004, Starmania was honoured as a MasterWork by the Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada.
A comeback tour, directed by Thomas Jolly, Nicolas Ghesquière and Victor Le Masne (Housse de Racket), was announced in 2020 and set to premiere in France on 11 November 2021. It was postponed to 8 November 2022, because of the COVID-19 pandemic The new production rose up to the high expectations of the audience.