folklore is here! The terrific Taylor Swift recently released her 8th album folklore which she explains on Instagram in a recent post that the album's songs are stories of her own but from others too:
We got to thinking, imagine if these songs were from the perspective of some of our favorite musical theatre characters. Taylor's lyrics really paint such marvelous, detailed pictures which helped us find possible theatrical perspectives for each of these songs.
"the 1" - a Mean Girls' Cady Heron story?
Spoiler Alert: If you haven't seen Mean Girls the musical or the film, maybe scroll down to the next song. This tune immediately made us think of our heroine Cady Heron when her and the grool Aaron Samuels get into a fight at her house party.
"cardigan" - a Hamilton's Elizabeth Schuyler story?
Swifties have been putting clues together that "august," "betty" and "cardigan" are the three songs Taylor recently mentioned are part of a trio of songs exploring the perspectives of the three members of a love triangle. For a deeper dive, head to Entertainment Weekly for their detailed investigating! Well for this article, what if it was a modern day Eliza Schuyler? Think of Hamilton as a busy writer only free on weekends! This could have been "Burn."
"the last great american dynasty" - a Honeymoon in Vegas' Betsy Nolan's story?
What if Betsy Nolan and Jack Singer end up in Rhode Island? As Betsy sings in "Anywhere But Here" she wanted an old fashioned house with her love Jack and their future family. What if they had the new start in that house Taylor sings about after Rebekah!?
"exile" - a Six's Catherine Parr story?
We've got a breakup tune for possibly Catherine Parr. She might not have liked the ending of the marriages of Henry VIII's other wives!
"my tears ricochet" - a Moulin Rouge's Satine story?
Again - a bit of a spoiler alert if you haven't seen the Moulin Rouge musical or film. Scroll on down to the next song! This song could easily have been sung by Satine to the Duke. Listen to those lyrics for something that might remind you of "Come What May"!
"mirrorball" - a Hedwig and the Angry Inch's Hedwig story?
We love the idea of this being sung by Hedwig. This splendid tune reminds us of something that could have fallen right into the incredible Stephen Trask score as part of Hedwig's journey to stardom.
"seven" - a Spring Awakening's's Moritz Stiefel story?
It's a stretch but if Moritz and Ilse lived in Pennsylvania, they could play pirates like they used to do. Moritz could save Ilse from her unhappy home life.
"august" - a Hamilton's Maria Reynolds story?
As part of that love triangle trio of songs, this tune is possibly sung by the person who the person singing "betty" is having an affair with. Still caught up? Cool. Another spoiler alert if you haven't seen, listened, read or are not familiar with Hamilton - scroll along! If you're well acquainted you can see why this would be a match for a summer affair.
"this is me trying" - a Next to Normal's Natalie story?
Hey - we can picture Natalie singing this to Henry any day about trying to open up to him. He likes her so much but she is closed off as they sing in "Perfect For You." After "Hey's #1, 2, and 3" - we can imagine Natalie singing the song right back to Henry.
"illicit affairs" - a Waitress' Jenna Hunterson story?
This could have fit into Act 2 of Waitress no problem. Jenna and Dr. Pomatter had an affair of their own without Earl or Mrs. Pomatter knowing.
"invisible string" - a Hadestown's Eurydice story?
When you think of epic love stories, you have to think of Orpheus and Eurydice. A modern day Eurydice could have sung this to Orpheus. Listen to Taylor's lyric and it could have been one of the sad songs Hermes warned us about in Hadestown.
"mad woman" - a Chicago's Velma Kelly story?
Velma Kelly's own husband Charlie cheated on her with her sister Veronica! Velma explains her side of the story in "Cell Block Tango"
"epiphany" - a Bandstand's Donny Novitsky story?
This song's lyric paints a picture of a soldier's service during a war. Top of mind was Donny Novitsky and his life coming home from the war. The things that Donny saw happen to his close friends and the things he personally endured during wartime stayed with him long after.
"betty" - a Hamilton's Alexander Hamilton story?
Elizabeth Schuyler... so who else could a potential Alexander be singing this song too. We wonder if Peggy called her Betty! Listen to this track and then listen to "It's Quiet Uptown." The parallels! We see you gardens in both songs.
"peace" - an Oklahoma!'s Laurey story?
It's almost like a nod to the lyrics Laurey and Curly sing in "People Will Say We're In Love."
"hoax" - a Les Misérables's Eponine story?
Eponine's dreams were dashed when Marius and Cosette fall in love. "Hoax" is a wallop of a breakup song and is so heartbreaking. These lyrics are about a New York love story but if it was France it could have been sung by Eponine.
