Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, is one of the greatest musicals ever written. Not only is it still performed today, but numerous film versions have portrayed the story as well. What many people enjoy about this musical is that unlike many other musical writers, Webber and Rice do not use much of a creative license in their story. They stick amazingly close to the actual story line presented in the bible. Despite their attempts to keep the storyline in sync with the bible, few minute details are changed.
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat tells the story of the life of Jacob’s favorite son Joseph. The musical opens showing how Joseph is favored by his father, but secretly despised by his eleven brothers. After he receives a techinicolor dreamcoat from his father, his brothers are fed up with the way he is blatantly favored. They first wish to kill him, but before they are able to, a group of passing Ishmaelites offer to buy him to use as a slave. The brothers immediately accept this offer and return home to tell their father how their brother Joseph had been “killed” in a tragic accident. Meanwhile, Joseph arrives in Egypt where Potiphar, a high ranking Egyptian officer, purchases him. Like Jacob, Potiphar also favors Joseph. One day Potiphar’s wife attempts to seduce Joseph. Though Joseph turns her down, she accuses him of sleeping with her anyways. In response, Potiphar throws him jail where he meets a baker and Pharaoh’s servant. They approach him with their dreams, both of which he is able to interpret successfully. Years later, Pharaoh calls upon him to interpret his dream, which again he successfully interprets. He in then appointed to be Pharaoh’s number two man, and is in charge of preparing for the famine he predicted. Joseph’s brothers eventually come to Egypt in search of food. At first, they no longer even recognize Joseph as there brother, but after some trickery by Joseph, they are soon reunited.
One of the few differences between the biblical story in Genesis and the rendition of Webber and Rice, is the description of the actual coat. The bible verse describes the coat as, “a richly ornamented robe” (Genesis 37:3 New International Version). There is never any mention that the coat is a “multi-colored dreamcoat.”
Another one of the few differences between the Webber’s musical and the biblical story concerns where the story ends. In the bible, Joseph’s father and all of his brothers move to Egypt with him. This does not happen in the film. The film also does not continue far enough into Joseph’s life to show his two children, Manasseh and Ephraim. The blessing of the two children, as well as Joseph himself, is never given by Jacob. Finally, only the bible speaks of the death of Joseph and of his wish for his bones to be one day carried into the Promised Land.
Many non-fictional musicals attempt to keep their storylines exactly as they occurred, details will always be slightly askew; Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is no different. Despite its differences, it is still one of the most beloved works of theater ever performed. It is a wonderful production that the entire family can enjoy, no matter what age they may be. By breathing new life to an old story, Webber and Rice have encouraged the youth to enjoy hearing the bible passages. Though no one can predict the future, one thing is safe to say: as long as musicals are produced, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat will certainly be one of them.
