Here’s a pop quiz for you, in two senses of the word “pop”:

What entertainment franchise has made more money than any other? By franchise, I mean licensed work of any kind: music, movies, television, theater.

Right away, I’m sure you’ve eliminated theater. I mean, movies and TV gross much, much more than anything you can put on a stage, right? The probable answers to this question for most people would include Star Wars, the Harry Potter films, and maybe the Beatles songbook.

Wrong, wrong, wrong.

The richest entertainment franchise in the world is ...

“The Phantom of the Opera.”

The musical about a guy who lives in a sewer and seduces a young singer has grossed $1.9 billion in various productions around the globe, much of it going to its composer and producer, Andrew Lloyd Webber–excuse me, Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber to you and me.

Which brings us to “Diet! The Musical.”

“Diet! The Musical” has also made $1.9 billion, minus that same figure. All right, it hasn’t made a buck yet, but then, it hasn’t opened yet. The ariZoni‑nominated new musical opens in a new production Oct. 3 at Theater 4301 in Old Town Scottsdale, and runs there through Oct. 7. (The show was nominated on the basis of its initial, more intimate premiere production last spring at North Valley Playhouse.)

I wrote it. Well, I wrote the music and half the lyrics. The book (dialogue) and the other half of the lyrics were written by Susan Simpson LaFave, who, conveniently enough for a collaborative team, is related to me by marriage–ours. Why did we write this show? Why have we spent a year of our lives figuring out how to tell the story‑in‑song of two young women and their “quest for love and the perfect body?”

Not for the money. Well, not primarily.

Art and money are friendly enemies. Nobody I’ve ever known has gone into the arts for money. (We’re not counting pop music here, where fame and its attendant riches seem to be the No. 1 ambition.) People become artists because they love the art they practice, or because they have something to say that can only be said through acting, or writing, or dancing, or composing music. But at some point–and that point arrives early in a money‑conscious society–it also becomes necessary to pay the bills without having to sling espresso for minimum wage. What to do?

Everyone’s answer is different. Susan and I decided we could come up with a show that has singable melodies, fun lyrics and good story telling, while also appealing to the general culture’s obsession with weight and weight loss. We believe we’ve done that with “Diet! The Musical,” and we believe audiences will respond en masse, filling up Theater 4301 every night, as they filled the smaller space of North Valley Playhouse last spring.

People want new musicals. If the evidence of “Phantom” isn’t enough for you, check out the crowds who stuff Gammage Auditorium every time a new show hits that space. (This week, it’s Jersey Boys.) Official cultural spokesmen shove the musical to the side, claiming that audiences only want pop music, NASCAR, and professional wrestling. We believe that “Diet!,” along with the many other musicals that premiere every year, prove them hopelessly wrong.

For information on “Diet! The Musical,” or to buy tickets, call (480) 994‑2787, or log on to dietthemusical.com.