The Contemporary Musical Transformed: The Influence of ‘La La Land’
When La La Land debuted in 2016, it mesmerized global audiences with its lively hues, captivating jazz, and poignant love story. Although it clearly paid homage to the classic days of Hollywood, the movie also played a significant role in advancing contemporary musicals. Alongside its visual flair and renowned cast, La La Land presented daring structural, thematic, and technical advancements that influenced filmmakers and viewers alike.
Reviving the Song-and-Dance Tradition
Musicals had gradually retreated from mainstream cinema, with few breaking through between the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. La La Land reignited public appetite for the genre by embracing classic tropes—spontaneous street performances, fantasy sequences, and ensemble numbers. The film’s opening, “Another Day of Sun,” immediately conjured memories of earlier musical spectacles with its sweeping camera movement across a Los Angeles freeway. However, director Damien Chazelle modernized the form with single-take choreography, integrating the bustle of contemporary city life rather than confining action to sound stages. This urban realism, tied intricately to the music, made song-and-dance central not merely as spectacle but as a language for character expression.
A New Kind of Musical Narrative
Rather than following a purely optimistic trajectory, La La Land explored ambition, compromise, and the bittersweet cost of dreams. The narrative structure upends expectations: while it delivers moments of euphoric joy, the film culminates in an alternative-reality montage, facing the heartbreak of what could have been. By doing so, Chazelle challenged the tidy resolutions of classic musicals, infusing contemporary emotional complexity. Critics and audiences alike noted how numbers like “City of Stars” or “Audition (The Fools Who Dream)” deepen the narrative rather than serving as interludes, merging plot with music emotionally and thematically.
Visual Storytelling and Cinematic Techniques
La La Land elevated its storytelling through distinctive visual language. Cinematographer Linus Sandgren employed bold primary colors reminiscent of Technicolor films, but harnessed digital technology and innovative lighting to evoke mood and memory. The film’s use of long takes in dance sequences, practical sets on location, and homage-laden visual cues expanded the musical idiom for a new generation. For instance, the planetarium dance is both a tribute to the fantasy ballets of Vincente Minnelli and a contemporary expression of limitless aspiration. Such sequences benefit from digital effects not as spectacle, but as tools to heighten emotion.
The Importance of Music and Sound in Building Character
Composer Justin Hurwitz, along with lyricists Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, created a musical experience that honors jazz and classic show tunes while also integrating modern musical influences. The music in the film often blurs the lines between diegetic and non-diegetic elements: characters perform for audiences within the story and for their own personal expression, providing insight into their mental states. An example is Mia’s audition song, which shifts from a narrative element to a source of personal release, giving the audience a glimpse into her internal struggles. Sebastian’s deep engagement with jazz illustrates the balance between maintaining tradition and embracing new ideas, mirroring the film’s own blend of genres.
Social and Cultural Resonance
La La Land resonated with audiences beyond film enthusiasts, becoming a worldwide cultural icon. Its box office success—grossing over $440 million internationally—and its dominance in awards, winning six Academy Awards, marked a resurgence for original musicals within the mainstream. Set in the diverse city of Los Angeles, featuring a globally varied supporting cast and highlighting immigrant aspirations, it emerged as a universal narrative while portraying distinctly American dreams. In educational and community theater, the film’s impact is visible in the increasing array of modern musicals with original soundtracks, movement-focused staging, and lifelike character development.
Legacy: Inspiring a Fresh Creative Surge
Since La La Land, several musicals have been released targeting comparable artistic and commercial success, including The Greatest Showman, Mary Poppins Returns, and In the Heights. Streaming services have also started funding musical productions, while prominent award organizations have shown greater openness to the genre. Experts and reviewers observe that the movie’s ability to merge nostalgia with innovation established a benchmark, showing that musicals can thrive in the market while maintaining artistic goals and modern significance.
A Reflective Synthesis
La La Land contributed substantially to the language and legacy of the modern musical. Its technical virtuosity, emotional authenticity, and willingness to embrace both the old and the new positioned it as a benchmark for innovation in a genre long defined by tradition. Rather than merely commemorating the past, the film expanded the vocabulary of the musical for a rapidly changing media landscape—inviting both creators and audiences to rediscover the magic and meaning of stories told through song and dance.
