The Musical: A Concise History
- Author: Findlay, Jamie
- Author: Gänzl, Kurt
The Musical: A Concise History
- Author: Findlay, Jamie
- Author: Gänzl, Kurt
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About
A complete introduction to musical theater from its roots in the eighteenth century through today, written by a master historian.
The Musical, Second Edition, introduces students and general readers to the entire scope of the history of musical theater, from eighteenth-century ballad operas to nineteenth-century operettas, to the Golden Age of Broadway to today. In this comprehensive history, master theater historian Kurt Gänzl draws on his vast knowledge of the productions, the actors, the music and dance, and the reception of the central repertory of the musical theater. Focus boxes on key shows are included in every chapter, along with a chronology of the major musical productions described in the text. Production photographs from around the world enhance the descriptions of the costumes and staging. This book is an ideal introduction for college-level courses on the History of Musical Theater and will also appeal to the general theatergoer who wants to learn more about how today's musical developed from its earliest roots.
Contents
- Preface
- Introduction to the Second Edition
- 1. The Early Days: 1700–1849
- The Musical Stage before 1850
- Popular Entertainments of the Early Eighteenth Century
- Operatic Entertainments of the Early Eighteenth Century
- The Rise of the Original Musical Play
- The Rise of the Romantic
- Some Notable Musicals: 1700–1849
- 2. Opéra-Bouffe: 1850–1869
- Some Notable Musicals: 1850–1869
- 3. That First Fine Flowering: 1870–1889
- Post the Prussians
- Operette
- The New Era of the English Musical Stage
- America Awakens
- The New Burlesque
- Some Notable Musicals: 1870–1889
- 4. Novelties of the Nineties
- The Gaiety of the Nations
- America Awakened
- "Musical Comedy" Par Excellence
- Some Notable Musicals: 1890–1899
- 5. Into the Twentieth Century: 1900–1914
- The Musical with a Backbone
- Enter the Widow
- Some Notable Musicals: 1900–1914
- FIRST CATCH YOUR FRENCH PLAY
- 6. Those Magnificent Madcap Years: 1915–1929
- IT'S TIME TO DANCE
- Les Années Jazz!
- The Jazz Age in English
- THE INTERNATIONAL HIT PARADE OF AMERICAN MUSICAL COMEDIES OF 1910–1930
- The Romantic Musical
- AN INTERNATIONAL HIT PARADE OF ENGLISH ROMANTIC MUSICALS OF THE 1920S
- Operette for All
- Some Notable Musicals: 1915–1929
- 7. Whither Go You, Musical Theater?
- The Merry Minnows over the "Other Side"
- Some Notable Musicals: 1930–1940
- 8. After the War Was Over: The 1940s
- Some Notable Musicals: 1941–1950
- OPERETTA HIT PARADE
- 9. When Broadway Really Ruled the Stage: The 1950s
- The Merry Minnows Still over the Other Side
- Some Notable Musicals: 1951–1959
- 10. The Soaring Sixties
- Some Notable Musicals: 1960–1969
- AMERICAN MUSICALS IN THE WEST END: 1945–1970
- 11. New Departures: From Rock Opera to Party Musical
- Some Notable Musicals: 1970–1980
- 12. Monumental Musicals
- Some Notable Musicals: 1980–1994
- 13. On the Twenty-First Century (by Jamie Findlay)
- Some Notable Musicals: 1995–Today
- Index
