 Rodgers and Hammerstein were also concerned about what they termed " the tunnel " of Molnár 's second act — a series of gloomy scenes leading up to Liliom 's suicide — followed by a dark ending . They also felt it would be difficult to set Liliom 's motivation for the robbery to music . Molnár 's opposition to having his works adapted was also an issue ; he had famously turned down Giacomo Puccini when the great composer wished to transform Liliom into an opera , stating that he wanted the piece to be remembered as his , not Puccini 's . In 1937 , Molnár , who had recently emigrated to the United States , had declined another offer from Kurt Weill to adapt the play into a musical . 
