By Thomas S. Hischak
Even though the venue Off Broadway has lengthy been the birthplace of cutting edge and renowned musicals, there were few reviews of those influential works. Long-running champs, reminiscent of The Fantasticks and Little store of Horrors, are mentioned in lots of books approximately American musicals, yet what of the masses of alternative Off-Broadway musicals?
In Off-Broadway Musicals due to the fact that 1919, Thomas Hischak seems to be at greater than 375 musicals, that are defined, mentioned, and analyzed, with specific recognition given to their books, ratings, performers, and creators. offered chronologically and divided into chapters for every decade, starting with the landmark musical Greenwich Village Follies (1919), the ebook culminates with the satiric The poisonous Avenger (2009).
In this quantity, any paintings of final result is roofed, specially if it was once renowned or influential, but in addition dozens of extra imprecise musicals are integrated to demonstrate the intensity and breadth of Off Broadway. Works that brought an incredible inventive expertise, from performers to songwriters, are checked out, and the choice represents a number of the developments and subject matters that made Off Broadway major. as well as crucial facts approximately every one musical, the plot and ranking are defined, the good fortune (or loss of) is chronicled, and an opinionated observation discusses the work's benefits and affects at the musical theatre typically. the 1st e-book of its sort, this hugely readable quantity will please either the theatre student and the common musical theatre consumer or fan
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Extra resources for Off-Broadway Musicals since 1919: From Greenwich Village Follies to The Toxic Avenger
Example text
Indb 2 1/12/11 9:42 AM BROADWAY’S STEPCHILD: BEGINNINGS 3 Again Cook wrote the music and Dunbar provided the lyrics, but the songs took second place to the hilarious by-play of comics Walker and Williams who had first found success in vaudeville. White audiences were hesitant to attend, yet the musical managed to run a surprising fifty-nine performances. When Walker and Williams took the show to London where there was less prejudice, the musical ran seven months in 1904. Both Clorindy and In Dahomy would probably have been produced Off Broadway for longer runs if such a venue had existed.
The upstanding labor organizer Larry Foreman (Howard Da Silva) leads the steelworkers in a revolt and topples Mister and his gang. The sung-through “opera” included commentary by various characters who sometimes served as narrators as well: the oppressed Harry Druggist (John Adair), the knowing prostitute Moll (Olive Stanton), the pompous Reverend Shannon (Edward Hemmer), the corrupt doctor Mr. Specialist (Frank Marvel), the toadying journalist Editor Daily (Bert Weston), and the self-absorbed “art for art’s sake” artists Dauber (Warren Goddard) and Yasha (Edward Fuller).
In the raucous libretto, Rareback Pinkerton (George Walker) goes to Florida to con an old millionaire out of his money, and he brings along his bumbling assistant Shylock Homestead (Bert Williams). Soon Rareback finds out that Shylock has a considerable fortune of his own, and Rareback bamboozles him, using the money to live a life of leisure in Florida and then in Africa until Shylock finally catches on. indb 2 1/12/11 9:42 AM BROADWAY’S STEPCHILD: BEGINNINGS 3 Again Cook wrote the music and Dunbar provided the lyrics, but the songs took second place to the hilarious by-play of comics Walker and Williams who had first found success in vaudeville.