Chapter Nine

The Musical Theatre

Music theatre is antirealistic & presentational

All drama has always been partly musical Classic Greek drama was sung and danced Most renaissance performances were accompanied by

songs and instrumental music Shakespeare’s 38 plays contain singing...THE

TEMPEST has nine songs 17th century comedies regularly ended with a dance Musical masques evolved over time into ballet and

opera Asian forms of theatre involve singing, dancing and

instrumental musicStill, musical theatre is widely regarded

as a genre into itself for the past 150 years

Broadway musicals dominate NY box offices and NYC remains the international center of musical theatre

THE FANTASTICKS

Opened in 1960Ran for 42 yearsClosed in 200217,162

performancesReopened in 2006

Pulitzer Prize Award-winners

Of Thee I Sing, 1932South Pacific, 1950Fiorello!, 1960How to Succeed in Business Without Really

Trying, 1962A Chorus Line, 1976Sunday in the Park With George, 1985Rent, 1996Next to Normal, 2008

European influences of the musical includeClassical Greek Theatre

Greek Theatre’s were like modern sports stadiums

Greco-Roman Theatre

Shakespeare’s stage

Court of Louis XIV

Minuet at Court Royal Ballet

Lully’s Ballet at French court

Commedia dell’ Arte – Italian renaissance

Size and spectacle in 18th Century Playhouse

19th Century German Opera House

Russian Ballet at turn of 20th century

Influences on the American musical

RENT

Extravaganza

Niblo’s Garden, 1860

Niblo’s Garden produced “first” musical

The Extravagant Revue

Minstrelsy

Slayton Jubilee Singers

Christy’s Minstrels

Jazz Dance

Vaudeville

Variety Acts

Burlesque

Comic Opera

OPERETTA

Musical Comedy

Irving Berlin’s “The Cocoanuts”

No, No Nanette

Rodgers and Hart

Cole Porter

Show Boat (1927) by Jerome Kern

George and Ira Gershwin

PORGY AND BESS

Rodgers and Hammerstein with Irving Berlin

Broadway’s Golden Age

Show Boat, 1927

Of Thee I Sing, 1932

Porgy and Bess, 1935

Pal Joey, 1940

Oklahoma! - 1943

Agnes DeMille

Legacy of R&H

Memorable MUSICALS from the Golden Age

Irving Berlin’s ANNIE GET YOUR GUN (1946)Cole Porter’s KISS ME KATE (1948)Adler and Ross, DAMN YANKEES (1955)Leonard Bernstein’s WEST SIDE STORY (1957)Meredith Willson’s THE MUSIC MAN (1957)Jule Styne’s GYPSY (1959)Charles Strouse BYE, BYE BIRDIE (1960)Frank Loesser, GUYS AND DOLLS (1961)Lerner and Leowe, MY FAIR LADY (1964)Bock and Harnick’s FIDDLER ON THE ROOF

(1964)Michael Bennett’s A CHORUS LINE (1974)

The Contemporary Musical

In its heyday, the broadway musical was a star-maker: Jimmy Durante, Eddie Cantor, Mary Martin, Ethel Merman,

Julie Andrews, Carol Channing, Pearl Bailey, Bob Hope, John Raitt are examples

As film and television became more popular, the golden age of the musical came to an end.

During the 70s and 80s, a new artist emerged...the Choreographer-Director

Jerome Robbins (1918-1998)Gower Champion (1921-1980)Bob Fosse (1927-1987)Tommy Tune (born 1939)Michael Bennett (1943-1987)

Susan Stroman

Today’s pre-eminent Director-ChoreographerCredits include

Crazy for You (1992) Show Boat (revival) 1995 Big (1996) Steel Pier (1997) Oklahoma! (revival) 1999 Contact (2000) The Music Man (revival) 2000 The Producers (2001) Young Frankenstein (2007) The Scottsboro Boys (2010)

Dress rehearsal – THE PRODUCERS

Production shot – THE PRODUCERS

Susan Stroman credits

Contact

The Producers

The Scottsboro Boys

Stephen Sondheim (born 1930)

Company (1970)

The Rock Musical

The British Invasion

Jesus Christ SuperstarCatsPhantom of the OperaLes MisérablesMiss SaigonMamma Mia

Two men led the British Invasion

Andrew Lloyd Webber Cameron Mackintosh

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat

Cult Musicals

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

Musicals of the 21st Century

Musicals – A “How to”

Music

Composer writes the music Arranger prepares for performance Music director prepares music for performance

Lyricist writes the lyrics Stephen Sondheim writes both music and lyrics Cole Porter also wrote both music and lyrics

Musical Score

Pit Orchestra – THE PRODUCERS

The Lyrics of Stephen Sondheim

A Little Priest (from “Sweeney Todd”)

TODD: (spoken) These are desperate times,Mrs. Lovett, and desperate measures are

called for!

LOVETT: Here we are, now! Hot out of the oven!

TODD: What is that?

LOVETT:It's priest. Have a little priest.

TODD:Is it really good?

A Little Priest (continued)

LOVETT:Sir, it's too good, at least!Then again, they don't commit sins of the flesh,So it's pretty fresh.

TODD:Awful lot of fat.

LOVETT:Only where it sat.

TODD:Haven't you got poet, or something like that?

LOVETT:No, y'see, the trouble with poet is'Ow do you know it's deceased?Try the priest!

The Book of a Musical

What is "The Book"?The book – also called the libretto – is the least appreciated and yet most dramatically important element of a musical. It is the narrative structure that keeps the score from being nothing more than a disjointed medley of songs.

For many years, the main point of most shows was to showcase a score and/or a major star. As a result, the books of most Broadway musicals were a series of scenes, jokes and sight gags designed to get from song to song. By the 1940s, audiences were ready for something more, and shows like Pal Joey and Oklahoma! made it imperative that the book and score interweave to tell a cohesive story. This made for a much more satisfying kind of theatrical entertainment.

After all, the first job of every play or film – musical or not – is to tell a good story.

Rehearsal studio

Albert Taylor Hall

ESU Theatre presents JOSEPH and theAMAZINGTECHNICOLORDREAMCOAT

October 13-16, 2011