American Musical Theater - PowerPoint Presentation

Slide1

American Musical Theater

1943 - 2000’s

Slide2

Terminology

Overture

Prologue

Soliloquy

Reprise

Finale (Ultimo)

Solo, Duet, Trio, etc…

Ensemble

Entre Acte

Libretto

Book Musical

Synopsis/Overview

Review/Critique

Slide3

Rodgers & Hammerstein

Ricard Rodgers (music) & Oscar Hammerstein II (lyricist)

prove “lyrics 1st” approach easier to integrate songs and book of the show

Integrated/book musicals: music MUST fit character & dramatic moment. (ie - develop character and advance the action)

Great story telling, made everyday characters & situations compelling. Capture human condition as no one ever had

Slide4

OKLAHOMA

!

1st book musical (written by R&H) 1943

Everything in show advances storyline

Dance important for same reason

1st Original Cast Album Recording

Longest running musical (at its time)

Slide5

On The Town

1944 - 1st integrated musical

3 sailors “on the town” looking for love in NYC during wartime (creates empathy)

Women in command (more aggressive)

Symphonic score (1st time orchestra, dance all take part in telling story)

Music written by Leonard Bernstein (1st “serious” classical composer to write for Broadway)

Slide6

Carousel

1945 - Rodgers & Hammerstein

within 3 weeks of opening WWII ends

Takes place in N.E., based on

Lilliom

“conditional ballad” -

People Will Say We’re in Love

&

If I Loved You

Soliloquoy

Slide7

Annie Get Your Gun

1946 - Music by Irving Berlin

features 8 hit songs

“Shows Berlin’s talent as a composer

& that this medium could be wonderfully funny

Slide8

Finian’s Rainbow

1947 - Rodgers & Hammerstein

tries tackling racism with laughter

“

When the Idle Poor Become the Idle Rich

”

Slide9

Kiss Me Kate

1948 - Music & lyrics by Cole Porter

Taken from Shakespeare’s

Taming of the Shrew

Adult songs (re: love & sex)

Effected openness that we now have in lyrics

Received the 1st Tony Award for “Best Musical”

Slide10

South Pacific

1949 - Music & lyrics by R&H

Looks at racial & cultural relationships (war brides)

“

You’ve Got to be Carefully Taught

” [to Hate]

“cashes in” on emotional feeling about WWII

typical ‘decent’ Americans are forced to confront bigotry they’re raised with

Unusual show: almost no dance, multiple love stories, dramatic tension not provided by “bad guy”

Wins Tony for Best Musical, 2nd musical to receive Pulitzer Prize for Drama

Establishes “The RH Factor”

Slide11

core of Musical Theater Repertory (1950’s)

1951 - The King and I (R&H)

1958 - Flower Drum Song (R&H)

1959 - The Sound of Music (R&H)

Oscar Hammerstein II dies a few months after The Sound of Music opened, ending a career that spanned the Golden Age of Musical Theater & Film.

Finest work with Richard Rodgers, later coached Stephen Sondheim

Last song written “

Edelweiss

”

Slide12

Alan Jay Lerner & Frederick Lowe

1947 - Brigadoon

1951 -

Paint Your Wagon

1956 -

My Fair Lady

(based on George Bernard Shaw’s

Pygmalion

)

Stars Rex Harrison, Julie Andrews

Longest running musical to date

wins every major award, revived several times & translated all over the world

They surpass R&H!

1960 -

Camelot

Slide13

West Side Story

1957 - Leonard Bernstein & Stephen Sondheim

Inspired by Shakespeare’s

Romeo & Juliet

Originally dramatic tension was between religions, but thought too much for the time and was switched to race

difficult orchestra music:

Dance at the Gym

Quintet

Slide14

Guys & Dolls

1950 - Frank Lesser

“down to earth”, likable characters

flawed, but definitely human

Fugue for Tinhorn

Slide15

Sunset of the Golden Age

6 shows from ’64-’66 ran for over 1,000 performances:

1964 -

Hello Dolly!

1964 - Funny Girl

1964 -

Fiddler on the Roof

1965 -

Man of La Mancha

1966 -

Mame

1966 -

Cabaret

Slide16

shows in the ‘70s

Rock Musicals

Concept shows

Conventional Post-

Oklahoma!

musicals

Slide17

Rock Musicals

Hair

Rock musicals was the one hope for Broadway…

1st Full Rock Opera: Jesus Christ Superstar (1971) - Andrew Lloyd Weber, music & Tim Rice, librettist

Godspell (1971) - Stephen Schwartz

Slide18

Concept Musicals

Built around a concept rather than traditional plot

once subject is raised (marriage, love…) only then can characters comment/illustrate aspects on subject

Storyline exists only to illustrate central concept

songs provide commentary for characters

Company

(1970) - moral: Life keeps going; situations don’t end…”

No storyline, non-linear story

Conventional Post-

Oklahoma!

musicals

Slide19

Late 70’s

Deep recession, theater district filled with pornography & crime

Dancers become important! (reinvigorate Broadway)

Michael Bennett (dancer turned choreographer/writer)

A Chorus Line

(1973) - records actions of dancers at workshop

15 year run! Breaks all records! Saved Shubert Theater from financial ruin

shows bittersweet life of a dancer, kick-line and all

Slide20

Bob Fosse

wins triple crown of theater: Emmy (Liza With a Z),

Tony (1972 -

Pippen

) & Oscar (1971 - Cabaret)

Offers series of dance centered musicals where concept rather than plot drives show

1975 -

Chicago

(revival in 1996) - most enduring work

opened 5 days after A Chorus Line

Slide21

Flops and trouble

1976 -

Pacific Overtures

— all male cast (Kabuki style)

set in 19th century Japan… FLOPS!

By late 70’s, most Americans not aware of musical theater… Rock & Disco predominant sounds

sales of cast albums so low, some labels stop recording/carrying them

Musicals have become sub-culture

Production costs, (’79) shows cost 1million+, profit??

Slide22

late 70’s shows

1979 - Sweeney Todd written by Stephen Sondheim

tries to scare modern audiences

play is about revenge

1st to bring dark side of humanity on stage

(

cannibalism and murder

)

1979 - Evita (Weber & Rice)

End of ’70’s, Broadway centerpiece of NY tourism “I Love NY” campaign

Slide23

1980’s British Mega-Musicals

Producer David Merrick, “The Abominable Showman”

40 yr career teamed up w/ Dir. Gower Champion

6 productions including Hello Dolly &

42nd Street

1st movie musical adapted to stage

forced critics to come opening night, no preview

Gower dies opening night, Merrick uses it as publicity

Slide24

Cats

18 yr run (longest running show in history!)

Produced by Cameron MacIntosh & Andrew Lloyd Webber, music

almost no storyline, “it’s about…Cats..”

Allows whole families to enjoy theater

Memory

Merchandizing HUGE!

Slide25

Cameron MacIntosh

produces 4 top musicals of 1980’s:

Cats

Phantom of the Opera

Les Miserables

Miss Saigon

Grosses $8 Billion+ around the world

Uses highly identifiable logos for advertising

Slide26

Other ’80’s shows

1987 -

Into the Woods

(Sondheim)

Wins Tony for Best Musical Score

Merrily We Roll Along (Flops!) Last collaboration between Prince & Sondheim

Sunday in the Park with George - Sondheim w/o Prince

Inspiration taken from impressionistic painting

“

Putting It Together

”

Slide27

1990’s

Less than 5% of US public attending regularly

CORPORATE Musicals take over

shows produced/managed by multi-functional entertainment corporations (ie- Disney)

Beauty & the Beast

(1994)

The Lion King

(1997)

Slide28

Off-Broadway Shows

Rent

(1996)

Bring in Da Noise, Bring In Da Funk

(1996)

Jekyll & Hyde

(1997)

Titanic

(1997)

Ragtime

(1998)

Slide29

2000’s

The Producers (2001)

Produced by Mel Brooks

Scalp the scalpers

Urinetown (2001)

Mama Mia (2001)

featuring the music of ABBA

Movin’ Out

(2002)

featuring the music of Billy Joel

Slide30

2000’s

Wicked

(2003)

Avenue Q

(2003)

Assassins (2004)

Monty Python’s SPAMALOT (2005)

Jersey Boys (2005)

Young Frankenstein (2007)

Shrek

(2008)

Next to Normal

(2009)

Slide31

2010’s

The Addams Family

(2010)

The Book of Mormon

(2011)

Kinky Boots

(2013) - music/lyrics by Cyndi Lauper

Beautiful: The Carol King Musical (2014)

Finding Neverland (2015)

Hamilton

(2015)

School of Rock (2015)

Slide32

Films/Movies

Evita (1996) - feat. Madonna & Antonio Banderas

Beauty & the Beast (1991)

Newsies

(1992) - flops guaranteeing Disney sticks to animation films

The Lion King (1994)

Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)

Hercules (1997)*

Mulan (1998)*

Tarzan

(1999)* - music by Phil Collins

Slide33

Beyond Disney

The last big screen musical of the 20th Century:

SOUTH PARK: BIGGER, LONGER, UNCUT (’99)

Proves animated shows are not just for kids!

Moulin Rouge

(2001)

8 Mile

(2002) - starring Eminem (Marshall Mathers)

Chicago (2002) - Revival