EXAM 2 PART 2

MUSICAL THEATER IN AMERICA

Tin Pan Alley was inseparably linked to theater, because at the time, theater was the most effective means of
introducing music to the public. In the 19th century, America began to create its own distinctive form of musical
theater.

Forms of Musical Theater in the 19th Century

The first important commercialized form of African-American music was the minstrel show, a precursor to
American musical comedy. It was the product of the common man's culture and acknowledgement of the tastes of
average Americans. The music was a blend of black and white cultures. It was a common language between
different ethnic backgrounds that shared economic and social status. Minstrelsy centered on white actors
characterizing blacks, and although racist, it also represented the fact that black and white lower-class Americans
had many things in common.

In the beginning, minstrel music of the 1820s through the 1840s was analogous to the class-conscious punk rebellion
of England in the 1970s. The characters from this music gave a voice to the lower class and echoed anarchy toward
the upper class (which was in power at the time). Minstrelsy was also a form of lampooning legitimate theater. It
abandoned all forms of bel canto and melodies became more rhythmic.

When the Virginia Minstrels and E.P, Christy's Minstrels, were established in the 1840s, minstrelsy catered to upper
class theatergoers. Now that these performances were attended by a single social class, common ground between all
classes was eradicated, therefore all that was left in these performances was racism.

Although racist, minstrelsy created opportunities for black songwriters, paved the way for ragtime music, and
influenced theatrical programming.

Saloon owner, Tony Pastor, was the first to legitimize theater as family entertainment. He opened his own theater in
1881 and developed the concept of vaudeville. Vaudeville was a variety show that featured singers, dancers,
comedians, animal acts and acrobats.

Listening example: Mammy

Artist: Al Jolson, American singer, actor, and comedian

European lyric theater and operetta created a legacy that thrived with the works of Gilbert and Sullivan, who's works
included H. M. S. Pinafore and The Mikado.

George M. Cohan (1878-1942) was the composer who brought American musical theater to its peak. He was a
songwriter, actor, producer, and playwright for over 20 musicals. Like his protg, Irving Berlin, he was musically
illiterate. His compositions were simple singable and memorable melodes and therefore more accessible to the
public than the esoteric songs of operettas.

Listening example: Medley

Artist: George M. Cohan, American playwright, composer, and lyricist.

Composer Jerome Kern (1885-1945) revolutionized American musical theater with the Princess Theater musicals
in 1915. These productions were more intimate and whimsical than European inspired spectaculars. They used small
casts and had minimal set changes. Kern transformed American musical theater with his production, Showboat in
1927. This musical was based on a literary work and is the first example of serious drama in American musicals.
Kern wrote for Broadway musicals until the 1930s. His hits included the song Smoke Gets In Your Eyes and
Yesterdays. After this period, he wrote for Hollywood movie musicals and won Oscars with the songs The Way
You Look Tonight and The Last Time I Saw Paris.

Listening example: Smoke Gets in Your Eyes

Composer: Jerome Kern, composer of American musical theater and popular music
Artist: Anne Moffer

Black American culture impacted the evolving style of American musical theater with direct contributions for
musical shows. One such performance was the Creole show from 1893. It was the first black musical review to
break the minstrel format. Another contribution to American music was Harlem jazz pianist James P. Johnsons
(1894-1955) composition The Charleston, which served as the anthem of the 1920s flapper culture.

Listening example: The Charleston

Composer and Artist: James P. Johnson, American pianist and composer. Pioneer of stride-style jazz piano.

Eventually jazz influence made its way into white musicals. Its prominence is most evident in the musicals of the
Gershwin brothers, George (1898-1937) and Ira (1896-1983). George Gershwin was a master at writing music and
his brother Ira Gershwin, at writing lyrics. Together they penned a multitude of jazz-influenced Broadway scores
comprised of rhythmically intriguing melodies and cleverly rhymed lyrics. The pinnacle of their career is the
musical Porgy and Bess, which has on various occasions been upgraded from a musical to a full-fledged opera.

Listening example: Summertime (from Porgy and Bess)

Composers: George and Ira Gershwin, writers of many jazz-influenced popular songs.
Artist: Ella Fitzgerald

Songwriter Richard Rodgers thrived in the world of musical theater. He began his career in the 1920s
composing musicals and began working with lyricist Lorenz Heart. Their masterpiece was 1943s Pal
Joey. In 1943, Rodgers began working with Oscar Hammerstein II. Together, they created a string of
successful musicals including Oklahoma!, Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I, and The
Sound of Music.

Listening example: My Funny Valentine

Composers: Rodgers and Hart, American songwriting partners, with many works for stage musicals.
Artist: Sarah Vaughn

Modern Musicals
A common trend in theater is for musicals to be based on classic plays and literature. An example of one of the most
successful musicals in this genre would be Leonard Bernsteins, West Side Story. Bernstein was a prodigious
composer and conductor of the New York Philharmonic. Leonard Bernstein adapted West Side Story, from
William Shakespeares Romeo and Juliette. For this production he recruited Stephen Sondheim, protg of Oscar
Hammerstein II, to write the lyrics. The score for this musical seamlessly integrates jazz and classical music idioms.
American musical theater of the 1970s was dominated by lyricist Stephen Sondheim. His greatest works include;
Company, Follies, A Little Night Music, and the famously renowned Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of
Fleet Street. In the 1980s, the works of Sondheim were surpassed by those of Andrew Lloyd Webber. Webber
composed rock operas, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, and, Jesus Christ, Superstar, as well
as, Evita, Cats, and the iconic, The Phantom of the Opera.

Listening example: Sunrise, Sunset (from Fiddler on the Roof)

Composers: Jerry Bock and John Williams, award winning American music composers

Listening example: The Ballad of Sweeney Todd (movie starring Johnny Depp)
Composer: Stephen Sondheim, award winning American musical theatre composer

Listening example: The Phantom of the Opera

Composer: Andrew Lloyd Webber

Listening example: Angel Eyes

Composer: Matt Dennis
Artist: Bill Yeager

In the 1990s, musical theater turned away from producing fun light-hearted works and turned more to grand songs
and dance numbers. It was not until the 2000s that Broadway returned to producing lively musicals in the tradition
of the golden era of the 1940s through the 1960s.