When I first heard that Disney California Adventure was planning a stage show inspired by Rogers: The Musical as it appeared in the first episode of the Disney+ Hawkeye series, I probably thought the same thing a lot of people did. That was a funny joke in the show, and I bet the show at the park will be hilarious. But I have now seen Rogers: The Musical at the Disneyland Resort, and while it is funny, what it is even more is a fantastic piece of musical theater.
I am absolutely blown away by the show. It almost certainly could have worked as the joke that the Broadway show was meant to be in Hawkeye, but the people involved at Disney Live Entertainment have crafted something that raises the bar of what a stage show at a theme park can be.
Rogers: The Musical Is No Joke, It's A Real Musical
Rogers: The Musical tells a 30-minute condensed version of the life of the first Captain America, Steve Rogers, beginning with the events of Captain America: The First Avenger and running through the end of the Infinity Saga. As you can probably guess, the show needs to condense a lot, but while it has to skimp on story, that's the only place where the show cuts any corners.
As a fan of musicals myself, I'm in awe of how much I truly enjoyed this show. I'm humming the music as I write this. I want to buy the soundtrack and listen to it in my car.
As a musical, Rogers: The Musical does everything you would expect a Disney Broadway show to accomplish. It has all the key moments, the "I want" song and the love song. Plus, of course, "Save the City," the song performed in Hawkeye, is the showstopper. But none of it is done with the tongue planted in the cheek. The songs are exactly what you would expect if you were watching this show for real on Broadway.
For the emotional beats to really hit, you might need to already be versed in the story of Steve Rogers and Peggy Carter. Because so much of the story needs to be skipped over, the relationship doesn't exactly have time to breathe, but the key is that the emotional moments are there, and they work. The Steve/Peggy relationship is core to the story of Rogers: The Musical, and fans of Peggy Carter are going to want to check this out as much as any fans of Steve Rogers.
Sometimes the need to move the story along actually helps it. The end of "Save the City" fasts forwards through most of the Infinity Saga from the end of The Avengers through Infinity War and Endgame. This is represented on stage as Steve being repeatedly beaten down as he must "Save the City" again and again with no rest. This leads to the song "End of the Line" which I will not spoil, but it is an amazing piece of Steve's story we never see on film, but it's perfect in the show.
Theme Park Stage Shows Don't Have To Go This Hard
Is Rogers: The Musical campy? Of course, it is. Every musical is campy, it's the nature of the medium. Audiences have to suspend disbelief to a larger degree than almost any other form of entertainment to enjoy a stage musical. We can tell by looking at the stage that nothing we see is "real" and the idea that people break into song is absurd on its face.
Rogers: The Musical could have simply leaned into that and done the "parody" version of the Steve Rogers story, where every character is a caricature. That likely would have worked just fine. A stage show that is the "the MCU, but funnier" could have been really good. The Hyperion theater previously hosted a version of Aladdin where the Genie routinely changed up his routine so the Robin Williams-style jokes were current to whatever was popular at the time, essentially turning him into a stand-up comic. It was a good show.
Most of the stage shows at Disney Parks are like the Aladdin show. They give you some version of the Disney story you know and love, or they work as musical medleys with a loose framing device of a story that largely acts as an excuse to give you a collection of your favorite Disney hits.
Rogers: The Musical could have gone one of those routes, giving guests some humor or simply a live-action MCU performance. Instead, what we get truly feels like they're giving us 30 minutes of highlights of what could be an actual Broadway show. It's still funny. Nick Fury especially plays a strongly comic character, which is even funnier since Samuel L. Jackson plays Fury as the most stoic member of the MCU.
Rogers: The Musical Is A Must Watch At Disney California Adventure
Disney California Adventure is a park that is often overlooked compared to Disneyland, but it is a place you must go if you're visiting Disneyland Resort, and there are a number of attractions you absolutely must do while you're there. Rogers: The Musical is now one of them.
Unfortunately, there isn't a lot of time to see the show. Rogers: The Musical will run from June 30 through the end of August, running Tuesday through Saturday only. At this point, it's unclear if there's a chance the run might get an extension or if the show could return at some point in the future. If it's popular enough, there's a good chance for that, but it's impossible to guess when that might be.
If you are lucky enough to be visiting Disneyland Resort in the next two months, Rogers: The Musical needs to be one of the attractions you do not miss. Without knowing when or even if we'll see it again, you don't want to skip what could be your only chance.
