Musicals of noble aspiration always were a hard sell on Broadway. In 1948, Kurt Weill's Love Life barely ran out a season. Two years later, his Lost in the Stars, adapted by Maxwell Anderson from a novel of racial strife in South Africa, closed after just a few months. It did not help that the reviews were enthusiastic. Alan Jay Lerner called the score deeply moving and the title song a touching and heartbreaking blend of music and lyrics. The failure of Lost in the Stars literally broke Kurt Weill's heart.
Life isn't fair. If one has noble aspirations, one must act like a soccer player: one leg to stand on, one leg to kick. Umberto Eco's standing leg was teaching at university, the kick was "The Name of the Rose". Talent isn't enough yet. It is also fortune. But it makes sense to make a list of works with noble aspiration which actually had success! A simple list can be inspiring. And from time to time one should read Goethe's "Vorspiel auf dem Theater". A failure must not be heartbreaking if one has had already success. When the Marquis Ginori as an aged successful banker donated a chapel in San Lorenzo painted by Rosso Fiorentino, he didn't search success (if not in front of "God" and beyond Luther's ethic). Bach wasn't as famous as Teleman before Mendelssohn gave him publicity. Strawinsky earned a lot of money, but when Gershwin asked him for lessons he answered "You should give lessons to me! You earn much better than me!"
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How wonderful having what LEO calls: The free leg, non-supporting leg or kicking leg. But nevertheless your heart can break for thousands of other reasons. Anyway, with a successful ride through the world´s main streets the broadway should loose its broadness.
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