The Musical

Theatre

Chapter 10
10-2 What is Musical
Theatre?
Music has been central to theatre for over 2000 years
In Aristotle, Shakespeare, Moliere, etc.

As a distinct genre, though, musical theatre has

evolved over the last 150 years

Musical theatre has become the best-known American

contribution to world theatre
10-3 Musical Theatre’s Beginnings:
Early musical theatre synthesized trends popular
in late 19th century
To gain a visual understanding of the history of musical theatre, watch Broadway: The American Musical
it will enrich your knowledge of what has become America’s biggest theatrical contribution to the
world.  

Broadway Ep 1 part 1, (21:21) Broadway Ep 1 part 2 (23:40), Broadway Ep 1 part 3 (12:10)

– Light opera, opéra bouffe, Viennese operetta

– Melodrama
– Vaudeville & Cohan (7:06)
– American minstrel shows (10:40)
– Ballet & Dance routines (10 minutes)
10-4 Musical Comedy
in a segregated America
To get a better understanding of the times, read the following
article:
The American Musical in Black and White How race relations in th
e United States directly affected the development of musical
theatre. (PDF link to article)
https://howlround.com/american-musical-black-and-white
– A Trip to Coontown (Bob Cole), 1898
“The first musical entirely written, performed, produced, and owned by African-
Americans. Unlike other black entertainments of the time, Bob Cole's production had
a book and lyrics that could sustain a dramatic subplot.” This full-length black
musical comedy challenged the old custom of white actors’ “blacking up.” It was
written and performed by African Americans (some in white face), and employed the
emerging ragtime musical syncopations of early black revues

– Shows such as “Darktown Follies” (1914)

 The Age of Musical
10-5
Comedy
First great era of musical genre, from the 1900s to the
1920s
Dramaturgy emphasized spectacle over
narrative.
Musical Comedies featured plots that were:
– simple
– strictly romantic or comedic archetypes
rather than fully developed figures
– unchallenging themes: Emphasis on comedy,
singing, youthful romance, patriotic jingoism,
and sex appeal
– interludes of singing and dancing with little or
10-6 Examples of Musical
Comedy
from the 1900s to the 1920s
A Conneticut Yankee In King Arthur's Court (Rodgers &
Hart), 1927
In Connecticut in the 1920s, Martin is about to be married to Fay. When an old flame, Alice,
visits him, Fay knocks him out in a jealous fit. As Martin dreams, he is seemingly in the
court of King Arthur in 528.

Funny Face (audio only)

A romp about Jimmy Reeve and his three wards whose prize belongings he
keeps in his safe.

Anything Goes (Music & Lyrics by Cole Porter), 1934

The story concerns madcap antics aboard an ocean liner bound from New Yor
k to London.

Additional samples of the style of Broadway music during the 1920’s

(audio only)
 The Golden Age: Musical Drama
10-7 New genre introduced in mid-1920s

Musical Dramas featured:

– More sophisticated music
– Music and dancing connected to plot
– Serious and sometimes political plots
– Plays reached unprecedented commercial
success
Gaining international fame through touring
companies
Songs became popular hits on radio

Popular composer/lyricists: George and Ira Gershwin,

Jerome Kern, Cole Porter, Rodgers & Hart
 Examples: Musical Drama
mid-1920s

Show Boat (Kerm & Hammerstein), 1927

adapted from a gritty novel by Edna Ferber, uses music and dancing to carry its complex plo
t, touches significantly on race relations in America, and contains the famous aria “Ol’ Man R
iver”
(4min)
Oklahoma! (Rodgers and Hammerstein), 1931
Hammerstein’s lyrics furthering the plot - sought to write “a more primitive type of lyric . . .
expressing my own true convictions and feelings,” among them the following famous words
from Oklahoma! : “Oh, what a beautiful mornin’! Oh, what a beautiful day!”
Oh What a Beautiful Mornin’ (3 min)
OKLAHOMA! broke ground for future director/choreographers throughAgnes
DeMille’s choreography (6:17)

Porgy and Bess (Gershwin), 1935 (2008 Revival) (4 min)

American
folk opera", tells the story of Porgy, a disabled black beggar living in the slums of Charlesto
n, SC. It deals with his attempts to rescue Bess from the clutches of Crown, her violent and
possessive lover, and Sportin' Life, the drug dealer. 
(7 min)

Cradle Will Rock (8:46) (Blitzstein), 1937

The show was temporarily shut down by the government (Works Progress Admin) an hour
10-9 The Contemporary Musical
The genre from the 1950s onward

Emphasis on dance - Emergence of choreographer-directors

Jerome Robbins – Peter Pan, Gypsy, Fiddler on the Roof,

West Side Story (2009)REVIVAL – (3:22)
retells the story of Romeo and Juliet with a contemporary Polish American as
Romeo and a contemporary Puerto Rican American as Juliet
Michael Bennett - Dreamgirls, Company, A Chorus Line
(5:14)
Bennett was not known for a particular choreographic style. Instead,
Bennett's choreography was motivated by the form of the musical, or the
distinct characters interpreted.
Bob Fosse (7min) – Pippin, Sweet Charity, Chicago
raised dance to a new level of prominence when he developed a new
choreographic style—quick, jerky moves that suddenly segue to slow,
sinuous come-ons; bumps and grinds; costumes of white gloves and black
bowler hats—in a series of musicals that he directed and choreographed.
 The Contemporary Musical
10-10 The genre from the 1950s onward

HAIR (3 min) - Noted for introducing full frontal nudity to the musical form
(1968)
The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical  with book & lyrics by Gerome
Ragni and James Rado, music by Galt MacDermot.
Andrew Lloyd Webber
(Composer - EVITA, CATS, PHANTOM OF THE OPERA)
His works are notable for highly detailed characterizations., intelligent
books and lush music.
Stephen Sondheim
The Greatest influence on the Contemporary Musical
Sondheim’s plays have disturbing plots, cynical tone, skepticism,
mature plots and intricate music
(Lyricist -WEST SIDE STORY and GYPSY)
(Composer/lyricist - A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE
FORUM, COMPANY, FOLLIES, A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC, SWEENEY TODD,
10-11 New Directions for Musical Theatre
(Pre Corona Virus)

An increase in spectacle
Sung-through musicals
– Lush score, no spoken dialogue
Increasingly serious subjects
– Often grim material, such as terrorism, racism, pornography, and
more
– Rent, The Musical, Seasons of love
– Based on Puccini's 'La Boheme', 'Rent' tells the story of one year in the life of friends
living the Bohemian life in modern day East Village, New York City, 1989-1990.
– This musical brought a rock and rap beat to the music, along with a script and
staging derived from cast improvisations

– The Lion King (1997) With roots in experimental work and international
techniques, Julie Taymor (director) branched out to Broadway success from her Anti
realist roots.

– Les Misérables (1980)

10-12 Musical Theatre for a new Millennium
(Pre Corona Virus)

SPRING AWAKENING (2006)

award-winning musical, based on a German expressionist drama, utilizes inte
nsely profane lyrics and reflects the confusion and anger of teenagers beco
ming sexually aware.

HAMILTON Written and performed by Lin-Manuel Miranda

When Lin-Manuel Miranda sings about the drive of the "young, scrappy and
hungry" immigrant, he's not singing about just any immigrant. He's singing
about the man on the ten dollar bill, Alexander Hamilton. Combining hip-hop,
rap, jazz, R&B and Broadway tunes, Hamilton's score and lyrics are fresh,
innovative and catchy
HADESTOWN - handles mythic cycles of death and rebirth with as much aplomb
as it does contemporary questions about making art in a capitalist world

Musical theater in the age of coronavirus: An American rep

ort
Please read this article