Fifty Key Stage Musicals: The Podcast

DEAR EVAN HANSEN COMPOSER: Benj Pasek & Justin Paul LYRICIST: Benj Pasek & Justin Paul BOOK: Steven Levenson DIRECTOR: Michael Greif CHOREOGRAPHER: Danny Mefford PRINCIPLE CAST: Rachel Bay Jones (Heidi), Laura Dreyfuss (Zoe), Ben Platt (Evan),  OPENING DATE: Nov 14, 2016 CLOSING DATE: Still running as of publication PERFORMANCES: Still running as of publication SYNOPSIS: Evan Hansen is a high schooler struggling with both peer and self-acceptance. When a fellow student takes his own life, Evan begins to create a fictional friendship with the dead student, tricking not only the student's family but the whole world.  Producer Stacey Mindich revolutionized the relationship between Broadway musicals and their young fans, making recordings available to the public alongside the announcement of the show's first tryout, attempting to reflect their experiences on stage without parodying or satirizing them, and even leading a video campaign which includes fan videos in the show's projection design. Frederick D. Miller explores the ways Dear Evan Hansen comments on a societal reliance on social media while existing in an industry increasingly dependent upon social media to profit and survive. Young writers Benj Pasek, Justin Paul, and Steven Levenson provided nuanced observations on the budding culture around social media without moralizing or criticizing. It was this musical that then fostered the growth of such musicals as Joe Iconis' Be More Chill. Frederick D. Miller is an undergraduate theatre major at the Pennsylvania State University. A dramaturg, Miller's work focuses on twentieth- and twenty-first-century American theatre. His work has informed productions of Angels in America, A Little Night Music, To Kill a Mockingbird, and Caroline, or Change. He is the regional recipient and national semi-finalist for the 2020 KC/ACTF Award for Outstanding Dramaturgy, and a project associate for the #HereToo Project, which amplifies youth activists' voices through performance. An advocate for theatre education, Miller is a frequent teaching artist with high schools and theaters in the Central Pennsylvania region. SOURCES Dear Evan Hansen by Steven Levenson, Benj Paek, Justin Paul, published by Theatre Communications Group (2017) Dear Evan Hansen, Original Broadway Cast Recording. Atlantic Records (2017) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

HAMILTON COMPOSER: Lin-Manuel Miranda LYRICIST: Lin-Manuel Miranda BOOK: Lin-Manuel Miranda DIRECTOR: Thomas Kail CHOREOGRAPHER: Andy Blankenbuehler  PRINCIPLE CAST: Lin-Manuel Miranda (Hamilton), Leslie Odom Jr. (Burr), Phillipa Soo (Eliza) OPENING DATE: August 6th, 2015 CLOSING DATE: Still Playing as of this writing PERFORMANCES: +1900 SYNOPSIS: The life of American Founding Father Alexander Hamilton is explored from his immigration to the United States through his murder by political rival Aaron Burr.  W. Jerome Stevenson argues Hamilton's significance as a twenty-first century musical which was able to maintain mass appeal to the public amid a flurry of tourist-oriented Broadway productions. Hamilton's original score and historical storyline update the structure of a traditional book musical by fusing the narrative with rap and hip hop and reimagining white figures as people of color. The Lin Manuel Miranda, Thomas Kail, and Andy Blankenbuehler production set off a global revolution with its contemporary score but was later brought under scrutiny for its lack of accurate representation of Afro-Caribbean and African-American voices. W. Jerome Stevenson is an Instructor of Performance for the Helmerich School of Drama at the University of Oklahoma and served as the Producing Artistic Director of the Pollard Theatre Company in Oklahoma until 2020. Stevenson is an accomplished director and a proud member of Actor's Equity Association and serves as adjunct theatre faculty at Oklahoma City and Oklahoma Universities. Stevenson's numerous directing credits include Hairspray, Green Day's American Idiot, Crowns, and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. In addition to a variety of work in radio, television, and film, Jerome was the recipient of a 2018 Oklahoma Governor Arts Award for Community Service. SOURCES Hamilton, Original Broadway Cast Recording. Atlantic (2016) Hamilton, starring Lin-Manuel Miranda and Leslie Odom Jr., directed by Thomas Kail. Walt Disney Pictures (2020) Hamilton: One Shot to Broadway, starring Lin Manuel Miranda and Leslie Odom, Jr., directed by Elio Espana. Symettrica Entertainment (2017) Hamilton: The Revolution by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Jeremy McCarter, published by Grand Central Publishing (2016) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

FUN HOME COMPOSER: Jeanine Tesori LYRICIST: Lisa Kron BOOK: Lisa Kron SOURCE: Alison Bechdel's graphic novel Fun Home (2006) DIRECTOR: Sam Gold CHOREOGRAPHER: Danny Mefford PRINCIPLE CAST: Michael Cerveris (Bruce), Sydney Lucas (Young Alison) Beth Malone (Old Alison) OPENING DATE: Apr 19, 2015 CLOSING DATE: Sep 10, 2016 PERFORMANCES: 583 SYNOPSIS: Alison is a lesbian author and illustrator who looks back not only on her own evolution in discovering her sexuality but her father's tragic journey as a closeted gay man.  Courtney Laine-Self, who directed the regional premiere of Fun Home, examines the difficulties critics and audiences had categorizing this musical from its premiere as a musical based on an autobiographical graphic novel by Alison Bechdel while addressing the historical significance of its lesbian protagonist. The musical's address of queer womanhood in a coming of age narrative is widely embraced by queer women who feel the show represents their own experiences authentically. The marketing for the production initially avoided tying ticket sales to the subject matter in the plot, but after establishing the piece as a success, the campaign shifted to appeal to an increasingly vocal LGBTQ+ public. Opening in a time of significant political change for the LGBTQ+ community, the show's significance seems easier to highlight in hindsight. After surveying the response to Fun Home's mainstream lesbian representation, as written by Lisa Kron and Jeanine Tesori, this chapter argues that The Color Purple is overlooked as a Broadway musical which centers a female protagonist's queerness. The continued representation of lesbians on Broadway and the future of representation in the theatrical landscape as a whole is explored. Courtney Laine Self is a director and choreographer interested in creating new work in the musical theatre genre that incorporates non-realistic and abstract theatrical techniques as well as developing methods on how to responsibly and with innovation revive Broadway-style musicals. Recent credits: Assistant Director, Proof of Love, Audible Theater/New York Theatre Workshop, co-created dance musicals Making Bkjkt and RPT with 92Y, directed the world premiere of Sheila and Moby for Flying V Theatre Company in DC, and the regional theatre premiere of Fun Home at Millbrook Playhouse. MFA: Directing, Southern Illinois Univ., BFA: Music Theatre, The Hartt School. www.courtneylaineself.com SOURCES Fun Home, Original Broadway Cast Recording. PS Classics (2015) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

NEXT TO NORMAL COMPOSER: Tom Kitt LYRICIST: Brian Yorkey BOOK: Brian Yorkey DIRECTOR: Michael Greif CHOREOGRAPHER: Sergio Trujillo PRINCIPLE CAST: Alice Ripley (Diana), J. Robert Spencer (Dan), Aaron Tveit (Gabe) OPENING DATE: Apr 15, 2009 CLOSING DATE: Jan 16, 2011 PERFORMANCES: 733 SYNOPSIS: Diana, a suburban wife and mother, is so devoted to her teenage son Gabe that she has neglected her other family members. What makes matters even more complicated is that Gabe died when he was two years old. As Diana slips further and further away from reality her family must try to save her. Lyricist and book writer Brian Yorkey discusses his collaboration with composer Tom Kitt and director Michael Greif and the challenges in musicalizing a mental health crises in Next to Normal. Yorkey reflects on the delicate balancing act between presenting heavy subject matter and introducing levity to a narrative through humor without belittling mental illness. The development process of the musical helped the creative team realize the themes they were most invested in exploring. Controversial subject matter studied through a rock musical earned the surprise attention from the Pulitzer Prize committee and expanded the potential thematic focus of future Broadway musicals. Brian Yorkey received the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, as well as the 2009 Tony Award for Best Score, for Next to Normal. He was also nominated for the Tony Award for Best Musical and Best Book of a Musical for Next to Normal, and his work on the show earned him the Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Score. He's a graduate of Columbia University, an alum of the BMI/Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop and a proud member of the Dramatists Guild and the WGA. SOURCE Next to Normal, Original Cast Recording, Ghostlight Records (2009) Next to Normal by Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey, published by Theatre Communications Group (2010) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

IN THE HEIGHTS COMPOSER: Lin-Manuel Miranda LYRICIST: Lin-Manuel Miranda BOOK: Quiara Alegria Hudes DIRECTOR: Thomas Kail CHOREOGRAPHER: Andy Blankenbuehler PRINCIPLE CAST: Robin De Jesus (Sonny), Mandy Gonzalez (Nina), Lin-Manuel Miranda (Usnavi),  OPENING DATE: Mar 09, 2008 CLOSING DATE: Jan 09, 2011 PERFORMANCES: 1,184 SYNOPSIS: Washington Heights, New York is the diverse environment that holds an eclectic group of citizens. Usnavi, the show's narrator and bodega manager, observes the lives of his neighbors as they begin to forge new paths in and out of the barrio.   In the Heights was the first Broadway musical to rely on rap as its primary mode of storytelling. Composer Lin Manuel Miranda first began developing the show while a student at Wesleyan University with a desire to share his perspective as a child of immigrants and emphasize a universal desire to find belonging. Devon Hunt traces In the Heights' seven year development process, collaborators Thomas Kail and Quiara Alegría Hudes, and outlines the significant cultural influences which informed the work. The musical is significant as a Latinx-authored, authentic telling of Latinx immigrant stories and its success laid the groundwork for Miranda's later artistic accomplishments. Devon Hunt is an Assistant Professor of Theatre at Oklahoma State University. His areas of research include secondary musical theatre educator training and Black contributions to early 20th-century musical theatre. Selected regional acting credits: She Loves Me (SDSU), A Chorus Line (Welk Resorts Theatre), The Producers (Moonlight Amphitheatre), and the world premiere of The Tale of Despereaux (The Old Globe/PigPen Theatre). Devon holds an MFA in Musical Theatre from SDSU and an MM in piano performance from the University of Maryland. He is an Equity Membership Candidate and a proud member of the Musical Theatre Educators' Alliance. SOURCES In The Heights by Quiara Alegria Hudes and Lin Manuel Miranda, published by Applause Libretto Library (2013) In The Heights, Original Cast Recording. Ghostlight Records (2008) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

JERSEY BOYS COMPOSER: Bob Gaudio LYRICIST: Bob Crewe BOOK: Marshall Brickman, Rick Elice DIRECTOR: Des McAnuff CHOREOGRAPHER: Sergio Trujillo PRINCIPLE CAST: Christian Hoff (Tommy), Daniel Reichard (Bob), John Lloyd Young (Frankie) OPENING DATE: Nov 06, 2005 CLOSING DATE: Jan 15, 2017 PERFORMANCES: 4,642 SYNOPSIS: The rise and fall of The Four Seasons, a real-life band that dominated the 1960s music scene, is told through rotating narrators, who all offer their own theories as to why the band succeeded and subsequently dissolved.  The early 2000s saw an onslaught of failed jukebox musicals which aimed to capitalize on the disposable income of former rock fans by luring them to the theatre with familiar songs. Jersey Boys was successful because it tells the true, engrossing story of the Four Seasons and juxtaposes the violence of the narrative against the sterile, cherry tunes for which the band was known. Rick Elice examines how contradicting stories from the three living band members lent the show a multi-perspective narrative frame. The show set the standard for jukebox musicals which tell the story of the artists behind the music and led a fleet of such shows to Broadway for decades such as Beautiful and Tina. Rick Elice co-wrote Jersey Boys (winner 2006 Tony Award, 2007 Grammy Award and 2009 Olivier Award for Best Musical) with Marshall Brickman. His play, Peter and the Starcatcher, received nine 2012 Tony Award nominations (including two for Rick) and won five, more than any play of the season. It's currently playing in New York and on tour across North America. Also on Broadway, Elice wrote The Addams Family (with Marshall Brickman, music and lyrics by Andrew Lippa), currently touring North America, with productions in Europe and South America. In 2014, the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego presented the world premiere of his new musical, Dog and Pony (music and lyrics by Michael Patrick Walker). Rick is currently writing a musical for Disney Theatricals with Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, based on the film Make Believe, and Super Fly (co-written with Seth Zvi Rosenfeld), directed and choreographed by modern dance legend, Bill T. Jones. Heartfelt thanks to those whose work in the theatre makes him grateful for the day he was born: Sondheim, Stoppard, Bennett, Prince, Fosse, Robbins, Nichols, Tune, Nunn, Laurents, Stone, Kushner, Taymor, Papp, Schumacher, Schneider, Coyne, Brickman, Timbers and Rees. Rick thinks about them a lot. He never thought about Jersey much. He does now. SOURCES Jersey Boys, Original Cast Recording. Decca Records (2005) Jersey Boys starring Erich Bergen and John Lloyd Young, directed by Clint Eastwood. Warner Brothers (2014) Jersey Boys: The Story of Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons by David Cote, published by Broadway (2007) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

WICKED COMPOSER: Stephen Schwartz LYRICIST: Stephen Schwartz BOOK: Winnie Holzman SOURCE: Gregory Maguire's book Wicked: The Life and Times of The Wicked Witch of The West (1995) DIRECTOR: Joe Mantello CHOREOGRAPHER: Wayne Cilento PRINCIPLE CAST: Norbert Leo Butz (Fiyero), Kristin Chenoweth (Glinda), Idina Menzel (Elphaba),  OPENING DATE: Oct 30, 2003 CLOSING DATE: Still running as of this publication PERFORMANCES: +6000 SYNOPSIS:  Elphaba is a guarded young lady who is inflicted with green skin. Her roommate Glinda is an outgoing, popular student. Together, they navigate life at Oz's Shiz University. Their rocky partnership is made even more tumultuous when they discover they are both in love with Fiyero, a fellow classmate.  Though its tryouts and opening were met with mixed reviews, Wicked has maintained international popularity. Beginning with composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz's first encounter with Gregory Maguire's book, Wicked's path to Broadway included some of the American theatre industry's most notable talents, including Kristin Chenoweth, Idina Menzel, Joe Mantello, and Wayne Cilento. Lauren Haughton makes the argument that the inclusion of screenwriter Winnie Holzman as the librettist for Wicked allowed the show to examine the relationships of adolescent girls in a uniquely authentic way, positing the musical as a pioneering exploration of feminine friendship. The musical's employment and subversion of standard musical theatre conventions is outlined through a feminist lens and broad ideologies of mainstream feminist movements are applied to the show's storyline. Winnie Holzman is an American dramatist, screenwriter, and poet. She is known for having created the ABC television series My So Called Life which led to a nomination for a scriptwriting Emmy Award in 1995, as well as her work writing for thirtysomething and Once and Again Holzman has garnered fame for her work on Broadway, most notably for co-writing the smash stage musical Wicked. Lauren Haughton Gillis is currently an Assistant Professor of Musical Theatre at Indiana University. She has served on faculty at Northwestern University and San Diego State University. As a director/choreographer she recently finished a fellowship at the La Jolla Playhouse on their production of Fly. Earlier this season she choreographed She Loves Me at San Diego Musical Theatre, was the associate director on Jesca Prudencio's PDA at the La Jolla Playhouse Without Walls Festival and directed and choreographed the world premiere of The Magic Hummingbird. As a performer, Lauren appeared on Broadway in Wicked, at the Goodman Theatre in Turn of the Century (with Tommy Tune), at The Old Globe in Sammy (with Leslie Bricusse), and at Maine State Music Theatre in Hans Christian Anderson (with Maury Yeston) Lauren holds an MFA in Musical Theatre from San Diego State University and a BFA in Musical Theatre from Syracuse University.  SOURCES Wicked, Original Cast Recording, Decca (2003) Wicked: The Grimmerie, a Behind the Scenes Look at the Hit Broadway Musical by David Cote and Joan Marcus, published by Hachette Books (2005) Unnaturally Green: One Girl's Journey Along a Yellow Brick Road Less Traveled by Felicia Ricci, published by Felicia/Ricci (2011) A Little Bit Wicked: Life, Love, and Faith in Stages by Kristin Chenoweth, published by Touchstone (2010) How Wicked Made It to the Stage by Jeri Freedman, published by Cavendish Square Publishing (2018) Wicked: A Musical Biography by Paul R. Laird, published by Scarecrow Press (2011) Defying Gravity: The Creative Career of Stephen Schwartz, from Godspell to Wicked by Carol de Giere, published by Applause (2018) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

MAMMA MIA COMPOSER: Benny Andersson, Bjorn Ulvaeus LYRICIST: Benny Andersson, Bjorn Ulvaeus BOOK: Catherine Johnson DIRECTOR: Phyllida Lloyd CHOREOGRAPHER: Anthony Van Laast PRINCIPLE CAST: Judy Kaye (Rosie), Karen Mason (Tanya), Louise Pitre (Donna) OPENING DATE: Oct 18, 2001 CLOSING DATE: Sep 12, 2015 PERFORMANCES: 5,758 SYNOPSIS: Sophie is about to be married and wants her father at the wedding except she doesn't know who that might be. Limiting it to three men that her mother knew intimately, she invites them all to her wedding to see if she can figure out which one is her real dad.  Using the hits of Swedish pop group ABBA to tell a fictional story, Mamma Mia! was heralded as Broadway's first mega-hit jukebox musical. After the rocky reception of their first Broadway endeavor, Chess, band members Benny Andersson and Björn Alvaeus gave complete freedom to book writer Catherine Johnson, believing the plot of the musical was the key to its success, not the music. Upon opening, though the show was mocked by critics and ultimately overlooked by awards shows, the musical was a major commercial success. Malcolm Womack explores how its financial successes encouraged producers to mine the discographies of successful artists to guarantee Broadway hits with such musicals as All Shook Up, Lennon, Come Fly Away, and Movin' Out.  Malcolm Womack is an Assistant Teaching Professor at the Penn State School of Theatre. He has been published in the academic journals Film & Theatre and the Journal of Popular Culture, and has contributed several entries to the African American National Biography. Malcolm has written about Mamma Mia! previously twice, providing an article for the journal Studies in Musical Theatre and a chapter for the edited collection Mamma Mia! The Movie: Exploring a Cultural Phenomenon. He received his doctorate from the University of Washington with a dissertation on Harlem's Cotton Club. SOURCES Mamma Mia, Original Cast Recording, Decca Records (1999) Mamma Mia! How Can I Resist You: The Inside Story of Mamma Mia And The Songs Of ABBA by Judy Craymer, Benny Anderson, and Bjorn Ulvaeus, published by WN (2006) Mamma Mia starring Pierce Brosnan and Meryl Streep, directed by Phyllida Lloyd, NBC Universal (2008) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

THE PRODUCERS COMPOSER: Mel Brooks LYRICIST: Mel Brooks BOOK: Mel Brooks, Thomas Meehan SOURCE: Mel Brooks' film The Producers (1967) DIRECTOR: Susan Stroman CHOREOGRAPHER: Susan Stroman PRINCIPLE CAST: Matthew Broderick (Leo), Cady Huffman (Ulla), Nathan Lane (Max) OPENING DATE: Apr 19, 2001 CLOSING DATE: Apr 22, 2007 PERFORMANCES: 2,502 SYNOPSIS: Broke Broadway producer Max Bialystock meets accountant Leo Bloom who offhandedly mentions that under the right circumstances a Broadway show that fails could make more money than one that succeeds. Seeing a way out of his current financial situation, Max decided to produce a musical that is guaranteed to flop: Springtime for Hitler.  Finding waning success in Hollywood, Mel Brooks was eventually convinced to adapt his Academy Award winning screenplay, The Producers, into a musical. Kasey RT Graham follows the ways Brooks, director Susan Stroman, and co-writer Thomas Meehan reinterpreted the cult classic film into a two act Broadway musical. Additionally, analysis of The Producers as a uniquely comic piece among the weightier subject matters of other popular Broadway musicals in the early 2000s and a look at how the 9/11 terrorist attacks at the World Trade Center affected attendance at Broadway shows is provided. The musical's record-breaking success at the Tony Awards, including for Nathan Lane, heralded a wave of musical comedies based on Hollywood films such as Thoroughly Modern Millie, Hairspray, and Shrek.  Kasey RT Graham is a director, music director, writer, and educator. Associate and resident director credits include the Broadway revival of On the 20th Century, the national tour of The Phantom of the Opera, and the US and Australian tours of Dirty Dancing. Conducting credits include the national tours of Oklahoma, The Producers, The Wizard of Oz, and Spring Awakening. Kasey is head of the Musical Theatre department at the University of Nevada - Reno. His book Small Talk is available on Amazon. SOURCES The Producers, Original Cast Recording, Sony (2001) The Producers: The Book, Lyrics, and Story Behind the Greatest Hit on Broadway by Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan, published by Miramax (2001) The Producers, starring Matthew Broderick and Nathan Lane, directed by Susan Stroman, Universal Pictures (2005) Recording The Producers, starring Matthew Broderick and Nathan Lane, directed by Susan Froemke, Rhombus International (2001) A Year With The Producers: One Actor's Exhausting (But Worth It) Journey From Cats to Mel Brooks' Mega-Hit by Jeffry Denman, published by Routledge (2002) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SEUSSICAL COMPOSER: Stephen Flaherty LYRICIST: Lynn Ahrens BOOK: Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty SOURCE: The stories of Dr. Seuss (c. 1950s) DIRECTOR: Rob Marshall CHOREOGRAPHER: Kathleen Marshall PRINCIPLE CAST: Kevin Chamberlain (Horton), Janine LaManna (Gertrude), David Shiner (The Cat in the Hat) OPENING DATE: Nov 30, 2000 CLOSING DATE: May 20, 2001 PERFORMANCES: 198 SYNOPSIS: The wild world of Dr. Seuss comes to life as Seuss' various characters come together to tell the story of Horton, a lonely elephant, and Gertrude McFuzz, a shy bird, as they fall in love with one another.  Nathan Brewer argues for Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty's Seussical as a significant show that, despite lackluster reviews and box office sales, went on to find financial success as a staple within community theatre and educational institutions, especially through the work of director Marcia Milgrom Dodge. Seussical's ability to redefine theatrical financial success, and public exposure, after its failure on Broadway, offered shows that were not commercially viable to become regionally successful such as Little Women, The Addams Family, and Be More Chill. Nathan Brewer is a director of theatre, opera, concerts, film, and events.  Directing credits include Lincoln Center, The Kennedy Center, Washington National Opera, Park Avenue Armory, Theatreworks/USA, New York Musical Theatre Festival, numerous symphonic and pops concerts, and televised award shows.  Nathan is on the musical theatre faculty at The New Studio on Broadway at NYU/Tisch, and The College of New Jersey.  He has previously taught at Penn State and Westminster Choir College.   Assisting credits include Aladdin (Broadway), and Relatively Speaking (Broadway).  Nathan is the Founder & Artistic Director of Recreational Arts, a performing arts educational organization, with programs in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.   Stephen Flaherty is the composer of the Broadway musicals Ragtime (Tony, Drama Desk, OCC Awards, two Grammy nominations), Seussical (Grammy, Drama Desk nominations), Once on This Island (Tony nomination, Olivier Award, Best Musical) and Rocky. Additional Broadway includes Chita Rivera: The Dancer's Life (original songs) and Neil Simon's Proposals (incidental music). Stephen has also written four musicals at Lincoln Center Theatre: The Glorious Ones (OCC, Drama Desk nominations), Dessa Rose (OCC, Drama Desk nominations), A Man of No Importance (OCC, Best Musical, Drama Desk nomination) and My Favorite Year. Other theater includes In Your Arms (Old Globe), Little Dancer (Kennedy Center), Lucky Stiff (Playwrights Horizons) and Loving Repeating: A Musical of Gertrude Stein (Chicago's Jefferson Award, Best New Musical.) Film includes Anastasia (two Academy Award and two Golden Globe nominations), the documentary After The Storm and Lucky Stiff. Mr. Flaherty's concert music has premiered at the Hollywood Bowl, Boston's Symphony Hall, Carnegie Hall, the Guggenheim Museum and Symphony Space. This year celebrates Stephen's 32-year collaboration with lyricist-librettist Lynn Ahrens. Stephen and Lynn are members of the Dramatists Guild Council and co- founders of the Dramatists Guild Fellows Program. In 2015 they were inducted into the Theater Hall Of Fame. Upcoming: the stage adaptation of Anastasia. AhrensAndFlaherty.com. SOURCES Seussical, Original Cast Recording, Decca Records (2000) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

RENT COMPOSER: Jonathan Larson LYRICIST: Jonathan Larson BOOK: Jonathan Larson SOURCE: La Boheme by Giacomo Puccini (1896) DIRECTOR: Michael Greif CHOREOGRAPHER: Marlies Yearby PRINCIPLE CAST: Adam Pascal (Roger), Anthony Rapp (Mark), Daphne Rubin-Vega (Mimi) OPENING DATE: Apr 29, 1996 CLOSING DATE: Sep 07, 2008 PERFORMANCES: 5,123 SYNOPSIS: Mark and Roger are two bohemian artists living in New York's lower East Side at the height of the AIDS epidemic. Mark is a documentary filmmaker and Roger is an HIV positive songwriter. When Roger meets Mimi, a drug addict, he falls madly in love but is unsure if he should tell her of his impending mortality.   Composer Jonathon Larson set out to bring musical theatre to a new generation with Rent, a rock opera based on Puccini's La Boheme and set in Lower Manhattan's East Village. The musical helped break taboos and stigma around queerness, trans liberation, and AIDs. Jordan Dragutsky chronicles Larson's quest for giving his generation a voice that sounded like the popular music of the time with the sophistication of musical theatre composition, the advocacy of Rent by New York Theatre Works, the unique casting and design process that was helmed by director Michael Greif, and how the unexpected death of Larson catapulted Rent, and its stars, to global popularity.  Born and raised in Los Angeles, Jordan Dragutsky grew up surrounded by the entertainment industry and relocated to New York in 2010 after graduating from UCIrvine (BA Drama/Minor Queer Studies). Jordan has assisted in press offices and production/merchandising for over 30 Broadway, Off-Broadway, dance, and touring productions including: Harry Potter & The Cursed Child, Hair, Wicked, and Book of Mormon. He joined the administrative staff at the New York Film Academy in 2012, and from 2015-2020 he served as Senior Dept. Coordinator for the Musical Theatre department. Jordan is a proud member of SAG/AFTRA with experience working on over 100 TV/Film sets. Featured credits include The Cobbler (Goth Guy), Only Murders In The Building (Hulu), and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Ocarina Player).  SOURCES Rent, Original Cast Recording, Dreamworks Records (1996) Rent by Jonathan Larson, published by It Books (1997) Rent starring Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp, directed by Chris Columbus, Columbia Pictures (2005) Rent Filmed Live on Broadway starring Will Chase and Adam Kantor, directed by Michael John Warren, Radical Media (2008) Rent Live starring Jordan Fisher and Brennin Hunt directed by Michael Grief, 20th Century Fox Television (2019) Without You: A Memoir of Love, Loss, And The Musical Rent by Anthony Rapp, Simon & Schuster (2006) Rent FAQs: All That's Left To Know About Broadway's Blaze of Glory by Tom Rowan, published by Applause (2007) On Broadway: From Rent to Revolution by Drew Hodges, published by Rizzoli (2016) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

GREASE (1994) COMPOSER: Jim Jacobs, Warren Casey LYRICIST: Jim Jacobs, Warren Casey BOOK: Jim Jacobs, Warren Casey DIRECTOR: Jeff Calhoun CHOREOGRAPHER: Jeff Calhoun PRINCIPLE CAST: Ricky Paull Goldin (Danny), Rosie O'Donnell (Rizzo), Susan Wood (Sandy) OPENING DATE: May 11, 1994 CLOSING DATE: Jan 25, 1998 PERFORMANCES: 1505 SYNOPSIS: At Rydell High greaser Danny falls in love with good-girl Sandy. Throughout their high school days, they, and their friends, try to figure out life and love. Casting Director Stuart Howard details the way producers Fran and Barry Weissler changed the Broadway landscape by employing “Stunt Casting”-- the hiring of celebrities who will draw audiences to a show after the box office inevitably slows-- in the 1994 Broadway revival of Grease. Differences between “Star Casting”-- in which a celebrity with significant stage experience or training replaces a previous performer in a run-- and “Stunt Casting”-- in which no regard is paid to a performer's experience but their notoriety is instead exploited-- are outlined. Though the stars brought to the show elicited a range of responses from the theatre community, audiences, and critics, ultimately, the choices aided by rigorous and inventive advertising campaigns, kept the show running with fresh audiences buying tickets. Some of the celebrities that rotated through the production included Linda Blair, Joe Piscipo, Jon Secada, and Brooke Shields. Following their success with Grease, the Weisslers have continued their infamous casting practices with their revival of Chicago and other productions have taken note and followed suit.  Stuart Howard taught at The Juilliard School for ten years and gave Master Classes and lectured at S.U.N.Y. Purchase, the Stella Adler Academy of Acting, Carnegie Mellon University, Purdue University, NYU's CAP21, and The American Academy of Dramatic Arts. Stuart, Janet Hayes Walker and John Newton founded The York Theatre Company in New York City. Stuart has had his own casting company, Stuart Howard Associates, since 1980. They have cast scores of productions for Broadway, off Broadway, National Tours and London's West End. Recently, they cast the Broadway revival and National tour of West Side Story, Tracy Letts' Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winning August: Osage County, and the original production of La Cage Aux Folles. He is currently involved in the casting of the world premiere of The Heir Apparent by David Ives, Twyla Tharp's Come Fly Away, The Maids by Jean Genet and two new musicals based on the life of Josephine Baker. SOURCES Great Rock Musicals by Stanley Richards, published by Stein & Day Publishing (1979) Grease, Revival Cast Recording. Masterworks Records (1994) Grease starring Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta, directed by Randal Kleiser. Paramount Pictures (1978) Grease: You're The One That I Want starring Max Crumm and Laura Osnes, directed by Nick Murray. NBC Television (2006) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST COMPOSER: Alan Menken LYRICIST: Howard Ashman, Tim Rice BOOK: Linda Woolverton SOURCE: Disney's animated film Beauty and The Beast (1991) DIRECTOR: Robert Jess Roth CHOREOGRAPHER: Matt West PRINCIPLE CAST: Gary Beach (Lumiere), Susan Egan (Belle), Terrence Mann (Beast) OPENING DATE: Apr 18, 1994 CLOSING DATE: Jul 29, 2007 PERFORMANCES: 5,462 SYNOPSIS: Belle is a young girl who stumbles into a castle and is kept captive by its owner, a monster who was once a prince. Along with his staff, once humans now physical objects due to a witch's curse, Belle will try to teach the Beast to love again before the Prince permanently stays as a monster. This episode traces the way musical theatre artists Alan Menken and Howard Ashman reinvigorated the mass-appeal of Disney's animated films, which in turn lead to a profitable pipeline between the children's media conglomerate and New York City, beginning with a stage adaptation of the animated box office hit, Beauty and the Beast. The planned 1994 opening of Beauty and the Beast at the Palace Theatre directly influenced Mayor Rudy Giuliani's prioritization of the commercial cleansing of Times Square, Disney's exclusive access to the newly-renovated New Amsterdam Theatre, and the creation of Disney Theatrical Productions, which continues to adapt Disney films for the stage. Though critically panned, Eden Hildebrand demonstrates how the musical signaled a new age for Broadway's reliance on spectacle, a future for family-friendly tourist entertainment, and a new definition of robust merchandising presence in the commercial theatre. Eden Hildebrand is a Canadian performer, choreographer, director, and pedagogue. She holds a Master of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre from San Diego State University, and both a Bachelor of Arts in Dance (with a concentration in Choreography and Performance) and a Bachelor of Arts in History from the University of Calgary. MARCIA MILGROM DODGE's work as a director & choreographer has been seen throughout the United States, in Canada, England, Asia, Denmark and the Middle East, in theatres on Broadway, Off-Broadway, at acclaimed regional theatres such as the New York City Opera, John F. Kennedy Center of The Performing Arts, Arena Stage, Goodman Theatre, Denver Center Theatre Company, Glimmerglass Festival, La Jolla Playhouse, Pittsburgh Public Theatre, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Huntington Theatre, Bay Street Theatre, Maltz Jupiter Theatre, Goodspeed Musicals, Music Circus, Flat Rock Playhouse and abroad at the Nanta Theatre-Seoul, S. Korea, Fredericia Teater-Denmark, Royal Opera House-Muskat, Oman, Wintergardens Theatre-Blackpool, England. Evan Ruggiero began dancing at the age of five in his hometown studio and by age ten, he was accepted into the famed New Jersey Tap Ensemble. Upon entering his sophomore year at Montclair State University while pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre, Evan was suddenly diagnosed with Osteosarcoma, a rare bone cancer of the right leg. Enduring nine surgeries in a six-month period in an effort to save the leg, the cancer returned more aggressively than the original diagnosis. He was faced with the ultimate decision of amputation in order to stop the cancer and save his life, as well as undergoing chemotherapy for sixteen months. Eighteen months after the amputation, and only two days after receiving his “peg-leg”, Evan was tapping again. SOURCES Beauty and the Beast: The Broadway Musical, Original Cast Recording. Walt Disney Records (1994) Beauty and the Beast, starring Emma Watson and Dan Stevens, directed by Bill Condon. Walt Disney Pictures (2017) Disney's Beauty and The Beast: A Celebration of the Broadway Musical by Don Frantz, published by Disney Editions (1995) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

FALSETTOS COMPOSER: William Finn LYRICIST: William Finn BOOK: William Finn and James Lapine DIRECTOR: James Lapine PRINCIPLE CAST: Stephen Bogardus (Whizzer), Michael Rupert (Marvin), Barbara Walsh (Trina) OPENING DATE: Apr 29, 1992 CLOSING DATE: Jun 27, 1993 PERFORMANCES: 486 SYNOPSIS: In the early 1980s, Marvin is married to Trina but is having an affair with Whizzer. Deciding to live his life as a gay man, Marvin leaves Trina and begins a rocky relationship with Whizzer, whose life is put in peril when he is diagnosed with AIDS.  Falsettos is the fusion of two William Finn musicals exploring the trajectory of gay male relationships during the AIDS epidemic, Falsettoland and March of the Falsettos. Jack Lechner highlights the reasons that, although Falsettos wasn't the first musical to tackle same-sex relationships or even the first musical to tackle the AIDS crisis, the show had a lasting emotional affect on audiences and influenced later works dealing with similar subject matter. Finn's libretto, with James Lapine's direction, lives in authentic ignorance of impending doom through all of Act I, and the familiar character development alongside witty lyrics set the audience up for a jolt when one of the main characters contracts a mysterious illness in Act II. Despite inherent controversies, producers Barry and Fran Weissler attempted to keep the marketing for the show broad to appeal to a wide range of audiences. Though the musical has blazed a trail which can be traced through later works, this chapter notes the equally significant influence Finn has had as an educator of young musical theatre writers and how he continued to develop his unique voice in musicals A New Brain and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. Jack Lechner wrote the lyrics for the 2010 off-Broadway musical The Kid. His producing credits in film and TV include The Fog Of War, Blue Valentine, The New Yorker Presents, and the pilot of Mad Men. As an executive at Miramax and Film Four, he was involved in the production and development of dozens of movies, including The Crying Game, Good Will Hunting, and The Full Monty. His book Can't Take My Eyes Off of You was published in 2000, and his picture book Mary Had A Little Lamp in 2008. Jack Lechner is chair of the graduate film program at the Columbia University School of the Arts. SOURCES March of the Falsettos/Falsettoland, Original Broadway Cast Recording. DRG Records (1992) Falsettos, starring Christian Borle and Andrew Rannells, directed by James Lapine and Matthew Diamond. Live From Lincoln Center (2017) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

THE SECRET GARDEN COMPOSER: Lucy Simon LYRICIST: Marsha Norman BOOK: Marsha Norman SOURCE: Frances Hodgson Burnett's book The Secret Garden (1911) DIRECTOR: Susan H. Schulman CHOREOGRAPHER: Michael Lichtefeld PRINCIPLE CAST: Daisy Egan (Mary), Alison Fraser (Martha), Mandy Patinkin (Archibald)  OPENING DATE: Apr 25, 1991 CLOSING DATE: Jan 03, 1993 PERFORMANCES: 709 SYNOPSIS: After her family dies of cholera, young Mary Lennox is sent to live with her austere, widowed Uncle Archibald. At night she is convinced that she hears the sounds of crying and discovers that Archibald's bed ridden son, Colin, has been locked up out of sight for many years. Determined to bring sunshine to the boy, Mary begins to discover the other secrets the house protects. Director Susan H. Schulman traces the development of The Secret Garden as the first collaboration between an all-female creative team in a Broadway musical. Amongst a female writing team (Marsha Norman/Lucy Simon), producer (Heidi Landesman), and design team (Florence Klotz/Tharon Musser), there are noted recurring instances of significant memories reading Frances Hodgson Burnett's novel about a little girl struggling with life in a new home. By broadly describing the educational and professional obstacles overcome by three women involved in the premiere of the musical in their studies at Yale School of Drama, a bleak case is outlined for gender parity within commercial American theatre. Despite mixed reviews, audience responses to The Secret Garden were collectively positive and led the show to international success. This chapter examines the ways later female-helmed Broadway productions, such as Waitress, have benefited from or even overshadowed The Secret Garden.  Susan H. Schulman: Broadway credits: the Tony Award-winning musical The Secret Garden as well as its highly-successful U.S./Canadian national tour (Drama Desk nomination), the revival of Sweeney Todd†at Circle in the Square (Tony Award, Drama Desk nomination), the revival of The Sound of Music (Tony nomination Outstanding Revival) and Little Women and its successful national tour. For her direction of the premiere of Violet at Playwrights Horizons (New York Drama Critics' Circle Award for Best Musical), Susan received a Drama Desk nomination for Best Director. She received an Obie Award for directing Sondheim and Furth's musical Merrily We Roll Along at the York Theatre. Susan also directed the national tour of Sunset Boulevard with Petula Clarke as well as three productions for City Center Encores. She has directed for regional theatres throughout U.S.A., Canada and Australia, and most recently a new musical in Denmark. Susan is a graduate of Yale Drama School, Hofstra University and New York's famed High School of Performing Arts. Susan holds a full professorship at Penn State University where she heads the Graduate Program in Directing for the musical theater stage. SOURCES The Secret Garden, Original Cast Recording, Columbia (1991) The Secret Garden by Marsha Norman and Lucy Simon, published by Samuel French Inc (2010) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

MISS SAIGON COMPOSER: Claude-Michel Schonberg LYRICIST: Richard Maltby Jr & Alain Boublil BOOK: Alain Boublil, Claude-Michel Schonberg SOURCE: Giacomo Puccini's opera Madame Butterfly (1904) DIRECTOR: Nicholas Hytner CHOREOGRAPHER: Bob Avian PRINCIPLE CAST: Willy Falk (Chris), Jonathan Pryce (Engineer), Lea Salonga (Kim) OPENING DATE: Apr 11, 1991 CLOSING DATE: Jan 28, 2001 PERFORMANCES: 4,092 SYNOPSIS: In war torn Saigon, Chris, an American soldier, meets Kim, a sex worker lorded over by The Engineer, and begins a romance that produces a child. When Chris returns to America, Kim, dutifully and tragically, awaits his return to rescue her and his son.   A discussion of the impact of Miss Saigon on the casting industry and on the AAPI community. A film documenting the casting of Lea Salonga in the leading role sheds light on the racist and patriarchal process facing the young actors auditioning for the protagonist and a survey of public correspondence from Actors Equity representatives, critics, and artists illustrates the racism present in the casting of white actor, Jonathan Pryce in the role of a Eurasian character. Postcolonial theorists have written extensively about the troubling implications of the show's commercial success. This chapter seeks to outline the shortcomings in the Asian and Eurasian representation in Miss Saigon while envisioning possible futures for racially-charged stories on the commercial stage. Jeanmarie Higgins is an associate professor in the Pennsylvania State University School of Theatre. A new works dramaturg, she publishes widely on the intersection of theory and practice. Jeanmarie is the editor of Teaching Critical Performance Theory in Today's Theatre Classroom, Studio, and Communities (Routledge 2020), and her performance criticism is published in Theatre Journal, PARtake: Journal of Performance as Research and Theatre and the Macabre (University of Wales Press 2021). Micah Rosegrant- Micah (they/them) is a twink poet who carves queer divinity through breath, word, and movement. They are cousin and learner with all life, glitching their myriad selves to shape change as a spirit guided by relation, a Co-Director at Arts Connect International, and an online avatar @micah_pdf. Previous A.R.T. collaborations include: Creating Equal (Steering Committee); Making Democracy Work with the Harvard Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging (Co-Creative Ensemble); Dragon Cycle (Assistant Director); and Clairvoyance (Love Nurse). Sarah Shin (she/her/hers) is a Schwenksville-raised Boston-trained, Brooklyn-based Korean American theatre artist. She co-founded and still runs Asian American Theatre Artists of Boston (AATAB) to empower and connect Asian American student and working artists in Boston, is on the steering committee of API Arts Network, and serves as a Board Member for StageSource and Advisory Board Member for Boston Playwrights' Theatre. She is a member of National Queer Theatre's Artistic Collective, an Artistic Associate of Sanguine Theatre Company, and a 2020-2021 Asian American Arts Alliance Artist-in-Virtual-Residence, where she developed her solo work exploring Asian identity and Whiteness in musical theatre. She's passionate about more diverse representation, community and family, music, and gifting love in all ways possible. BFA Theatre Arts Boston University. Lianah Sta. Ana-  Broadway: Miss Saigon, YoungArts Theatre alumna and Apollo Amateur Night winner. Has trained at FPAC in HHS. SOURCES Miss Saigon, Original Cast Recording, Geffen Records (1990) The Story of Miss Saigon by Edward Behr and Mark Steyn, published by Arcade Publishing (1991) The Heat Is On: The Making of Miss Saigon starring Jonathan Pryce and Lea Salonga, directed by David Wright, Freemantle Home Entertainment (1989) Miss Saigon 25th Anniversary starring Jon Jon Briones and Eva Noblezada, directed by Brett Sullivan, Cameron Mackintosh International (2016) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA COMPOSER: Andrew Lloyd Webber LYRICIST: Charles Hart BOOK: Richard Stilgoe and Andrew Lloyd Webber SOURCE: The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux (1909) DIRECTOR: Hal Prince CHOREOGRAPHER: Gillian Lynne PRINCIPLE CAST: Steve Barton (Raoul), Sarah Brightman (Christine), Michael Crawford (The Phantom) OPENING DATE: January 26th, 1988 CLOSING DATE: Still Running as of this writing PERFORMANCES: +13,370 SYNOPSIS: Lurking deep in the bowels of the celebrated Paris Opera House lives a disfigured man, The Phantom, whose passion for soprano Christine Daae turns into a dangerous obsession.  The Phantom of the Opera held audiences captive since its Broadway premiere. The rock-infused score and traditional stage technology helped set a standard for British imports to the New York stage which would become mega-successful international sensations. Cast member Susan B. Russell introduces audiences to the corporate world of Phantom, as dictated by Sir Cameron Mackintosh, the producer, specifically creation under the confines of recreation and the effect this philosophy had on performers in a post-Phantom world, with a first hand account of how the corporation handled the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001.  Susan Russell is an Associate Professor in the School of Theatre at The Pennsylvania State University in State College, PA, where she teaches graduate and undergraduate literature/criticism, and Playwriting. She received her PhD in Theatre Studies from Florida State University's School of Theatre in 2007, her Master of Arts degree from Florida State University in 2003, and her BA in Theatre from St. Andrews Presbyterian College in Laurinburg, NC in 1979. She experienced a twenty-five-year career as a professional actor on and off-Broadway, and her plays have been produced by Emerging Artists Theatre, Lincoln Center, and Penn State University. Dr. Russell is co-founder and co-Director of The Center for Pedagogy in Arts and Design, cpad.psu.edu which is a unique place where information and the arts collaborate in extraordinary ways. RESOURCES: Hal Prince Reflections on The Phantom of the Opera Rehearsal Footage Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

LES MISERABLES COMPOSER: Claude-Michel Schonberg LYRICIST: Herbert Kretzmer BOOK: Alain Boublil, Claude-Michele Schonberg, Jean-Marc Natel SOURCE: Victor Hugo's novel Les Miserables (1862) DIRECTOR: Trevor Nunn and John Caird CHOREOGRAPHER: Trevor Nunn and John Caird PRINCIPLE CAST: Randy Graff (Fantine), Terrence Mann (Javert), Colm Wilkinson (Jean Valjean) OPENING DATE: Mar 12, 1987 CLOSING DATE: May 18, 2003 PERFORMANCES: 6,680 SYNOPSIS: Jean Valjean is a convicted thief who attempts to rebuild his life with a new family while being mercilessly hunted by the pious Inspector Javert. As these two men battle for their souls, the Paris streets are littered with a political revolution that will forever alter the lives of these two men.  Robert Meffe traces the development of Claude-Michel Schönberg, Alain Boublil and Jean-Marc Natel, and Herbert Kretzmer's epic mega-musical, Les Misérables through inception and how it created the template for musicals that would successfully fuse their scores with popular musical forms. Significantly, the creative team of Trevor Nunn and John Napier struggled to adapt the French novel's storyline in a way that would resonate with a contemporary British audience both in pacing and the application of universal themes. The show's success inspired a fleet of musicals whose plots waxed epic including The Phantom of the Opera, Miss Saigon, and Titanic. Robert Meffe- Broadway: Associate Conductor of Little Women and the last six years of Les Misérables, keyboards for Evita (2012 revival), Newsies, The Phantom of the Opera, Avenue Q, Spelling Bee, Grey Gardens and Bombay Dreams.  National Tours: Music Director of Evita, The Phantom of the Opera, Associate Conductor of Les Misérables, Sunday in the Park with George. Off-Broadway: Myths & Hymns, Violet, The Prince and the Pauper, and Gutenberg! The Musical!.  TV: Encore! (Disney+), Earth to America (TBS), Renee Fleming-Live at Lincoln Center (PBS). Mr. Meffe is currently the Head of the MFA Musical Theatre Program at San Diego State University.   SOURCES Les Miserables, Original London Cast Recording. First Night Records (1985) Les Miserables starring Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe, directed by Tom Hooper, NBC Universal (2012) Les Miserables: The Dream Cast In Concert starring Lea Salonga and Colm Wilkinson, directed by Gavin Taylor, Sony Pictures (1998) The Complete Book of Les Miserables by Edward Behr, published by Arcade (2016) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

LA CAGE AUX FOLLES COMPOSER: Jerry Herman LYRICIST: Jerry Herman BOOK: Harvey Fierstein SOURCE: Jean Poriot's play La Cage Aux Folles (1973) DIRECTOR: Arthur Laurents CHOREOGRAPHER: Scott Salmon PRINCIPLE CAST: Gene Barry (Georges), George Hearn (Albin), John Weiner (Jean-Michel) OPENING DATE: Aug 21, 1983 CLOSING DATE: Nov 15, 1987 PERFORMANCES: 1,761 SYNOPSIS: La Cage Aux Folles is a drag club owned by George and Albin, two men who have been together for twenty years. When Georges' son Jean-Michel arrives and announces he is engaged to the daughter of a homophobic politician, Georges and Albin must try to decide how they will deal with their son's intolerance.  Comparing early responses to Queer representation in film and cinema from French and American audiences, Robert W. Schneider sets the scene for the opening of La Cage Aux Folles, Jerry Herman and Harvey Fierstein's musical adaptation of a French farce featuring the first leading homosexual couple for the Broadway musical. Director Arthur Laurents was staunch in his desire that the show refrain from seeming overtly political, desiring instead to present an old-fashioned musical which featured a gay love story. This chapter details the positive impact La Cage Aux Folles had on LGBTQIA+ representation worldwide, it also touches on how the AIDS epidemic of the 1980s and 1990s dampered the optimistic tone set by the musical. Robert W. Schneider holds academic appointments at Penn State University, New York Film Academy, and Mount Union University, as well as serving as the Artistic Director for The J2 Spotlight Musical Theater Company and as an original programming producer at Feinstein's/54 Below in New York City. He is the host of the podcasts Behind The Curtain: Broadway's Living Legends, Gay Card Revoked, and This Was A Thing. For the past fifteen years Robert has been one of the most prolific leaders of online education in the arts. He is a proud member of SDC, AEA, and AGVA.  SOURCES La Cage Aux Folles by Harvey Fierstein and Jerry Herman, published by Samuel French (2014) La Cage Aux Folles, Original Cast Recording. RCA Records (1983) Showtune: A Memoir by Jerry Herman, published by Dutton (1996) Mainly on Directing by Arthur Laurents, Published by Knopf (2009)     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

CATS COMPOSER: Andrew Lloyd Webber LYRICIST: TS Eliot BOOK: N/A SOURCE: T.S. Eliot's book of poetry Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats (1939) DIRECTOR: Trevor Nunn CHOREOGRAPHER: Gillian Lynne PRINCIPLE CAST: Betty Buckley (Grizabella), Terrence Mann (Rum Tum Tugger), Ken Page (Old Deuteronomy),  OPENING DATE: Oct 07, 1982 CLOSING DATE: Sept 10, 2000 PERFORMANCES: 7,485 SYNOPSIS: This evening is the momentous occasion when one Jellicle Cats will be selected to go to the “heavyside layer,” where they will be given a new body and be returned to Earth.  In this episode, member of the original Broadway cast, Stephen Hanan, analyzes the marketing genius of Sir Cameron Macintosh, the artistic originality of Trevor Nunn, and the indelible literary capability of T.S. Eliot which led to the lasting success of Cats. A breakdown of branding and merchandising efforts highlights the ways Cats created a market for the international mega-musical. Hanan details the rigors of the unconventional process the actors and designers engaged in as the musical transferred from London's West End to Broadway, including his collaboration with Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber. Stephen Mo Hanan has worked in theater as both a performer and playwright. For creating Asparagus/Growltiger in CATS he was a Tony Award nominee, and his account of rehearsing that original production was published as A CAT'S DIARY. His Broadway debut was opposite Linda Ronstadt and Kevin Kline in THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE, and he later starred as Captain Hook opposite Cathy Rigby. He was co-author and starred as Al Jolson in two off-Broadway productions of JOLSON & COMPANY. Between engagements, he wrote and published the novel SCARPIA'S KISS   SOURCES Cats: The Book Of Musical by T.S. Eliot, published by Harvest Books (1983) Cats, Original Cast Recording, Polydor (1981) Cats starring John Mills and Elaine Paige, directed by David Mallet. Universal Pictures (1972) Cats starring James Corden and Judi Dench, directed by Tom Hooper. Working Title Pictures (2019) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

DREAMGIRLS COMPOSER: Henry Kreiger LYRICIST: Tom Eyen BOOK: Tom Eyen DIRECTOR: Michael Bennett CHOREOGRAPHER: Michael Bennett and Michael Peters PRINCIPLE CAST: Loretta Devine (Lorrell), Jennifer Holliday (Effie), Sheryl Lee Ralph (Deena) OPENING DATE: Dec 20, 1981 CLOSING DATE: Aug 11, 1985 PERFORMANCES: 1521 SYNOPSIS: In 1960s Detroit, three black women form an R&B group called The Dreams. As their stars rise in popularity, their relationships are torn apart as they try to balance their love for one another and their love for the spotlight.    Dreamgirls was born out of a desire to tell the story of Motown backup singers who wanted the chance to sing in the spotlight. Individually successful and well-established creative team members often butted heads through the workshop process, which allowed the show more intensive rewrites than the conventional out-of-town tryout process. At the time of its Broadway opening, Dreamgirls was the most expensive musical ever produced, but cinematic staging by Michael Bennett, a breakthrough performance by Jennifer Holliday, and an audience-pleasing score ensured ticket sales. Bill Russell argues that Henry Krieger and Tom Eyen's Motown-inspired sound of Dreamgirls appealed to baby boomer audiences in new ways and inspired a plethora of musicals scored with a pop soundtrack. Bill Russell is an internationally produced playwright, lyricist and director. He received Tony award nominations for the book and lyrics of Side Show. He co-authored the book and lyrics for Pageant and has directed that show in the Fringe and West End of London and many productions around America. He has also directed Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens (book and lyrics) around the US and in the Fringe and West End. Other book and lyric credits include Unexpected Joy, The Last Smoker in America, Brave New World and The Texas Chainsaw Musical. For more visit: billrussell.net SOURCES Dreamgirls, Original Broadway Cast Recording. Geffen Records (1982) Dreamgirls starring Beyonce and Jennifer Hudson, directed by Bill Condon. Dreamworks (2006) A Chorus Line and The Musicals of Michael Bennett by Ken Mandelbaum. Published by St. Martin's Press (1989) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET COMPOSER: Stephen Sondheim LYRICIST: Stephen Sondheim BOOK: Hugh Wheeler SOURCE: Sweeney Todd by Christopher Bond DIRECTOR: Harold Prince CHOREOGRAPHER: Larry Fuller PRINCIPLE CAST: Len Cariou (Sweeney), Victor Garber (Anthony), Angela Lansbury (Mrs. Lovett) OPENING DATE: March 01, 1979 CLOSING DATE: June 29, 1980 PERFORMANCES: 557 SYNOPSIS: Sweeney Todd, a wrongfully convicted man, returns to London to reclaim his wife and daughter only to discover that his wife has killed herself and that his daughter is now the ward, and prospective bride, of the Judge who sentenced him. Vowing to take revenge by murdering the Judge, Todd begins to practice execution on his neighbors whose bodies are then baked into pies and sold to unsuspecting consumers by Mrs. Lovett.  The inspiration for Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd is examined by Alison Morooney. Fusing the passion for mystery and horror from composer/ lyricist Sondheim and the desire to comment on the oppressive political structures of the Industrial Revolution from director Harold Prince, librettist Hugh Wheeler humanizes the characters from a British urban legend. Though critics lauded the score upon its opening, the musical's mix of styles and genre-defying designs earned it mixed reviews. This episode argues for Sweeney Todd's significance as a piece of theatre which, despite its socio-political message, allows an audience to engage emotionally with the characters, contrasting it to the Epic theatre of Bertolt Brecht, which sought to distance its audience. Alison Morooney is a stage director and choreographer currently pursuing an MFA in directing at The Pennsylvania State University. She has directed most frequently at The College Light Opera Company in Massachusetts and has served as a choreographer at Priscilla Beach Theatre and for Penn State Centre Stage. She has also been on stage regionally and with national tours American Idiot and Nice Work if You Can Get It. SOURCES Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Original Broadway Cast Recording. RCA (1979) Sweeney Todd: The Demon Babrer of Fleet Street, starring George Hearn and Angela Lansbury, directed by Terry Hughes. RKO Pictures (1982) Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street by Hugh Wheeler and Stephen Sondheim, published by Applause Libretto Library (2000) Sense of Occasion by Hal Prince, published by Applause (2017) Finishing The Hat by Stephen Sondheim, published by Knopf (2010) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AIN'T MISBEHAVIN COMPOSER: Fats Waller LYRICIST: Fats Waller BOOK: Richard Maltby Jr and Murray Horwitz DIRECTOR: Richard Maltby Jr CHOREOGRAPHER: Arthur Faria PRINCIPLE CAST: Nell Carter (Nell),Andre DeShields (Andre), Ken Page (Ken) OPENING DATE: May 09, 1978 CLOSING DATE: Feb 21, 1982 PERFORMANCES: 1,604 SYNOPSIS: Using the pre-existing music of 1930s jazz pianist Fats Waller, Ain't Misbehavin uses three women and two men to sing Waller's songs in a plotless revue celebrating his music.   Richard Dueñez Morrison's highlights the significance Ain't Misbehavin' had as a highly regarded, character-driven Broadway revue. Though a comparatively simple lineup of Fats Waller songs without book, elaborate set, sizable ensemble, or major stars, the show brought the world of the Harlem Renaissance to life in a way that was both novel and accessible for largely white audiences. Director-lyricist Richard Maltby Jr., and writer Murray Horwitz abandoned the idea of crafting a conventional, dialogue-driven telling of Waller's life in favor of a more nuanced evening which showcased the diverse talents of the five Black performers in the cast, including future stars Nell Carter and Andre DeShields. Maltby carefully guided the transition of the show from its intimate premiere at Manhattan Theatre Club's off-Broadway venue to the larger Longacre Theatre, ensuring the intimacy at the heart of the piece translated to a Broadway stage. When the revue won the 1978 Tony Award for Best Musical, new avenues were opened for Broadway revues as well as Black representation on the Broadway stage. Richard Dueñez Morrison - Richard Dueñez Morrison is a music director and voice teacher in San Diego, California. He holds a bachelor's degree in Stage Management from Webster University and a master's degree in Musical Theater from San Diego State University. His favorite musicals include Sweeney Todd, Nine, Andrew Lippa's A Little Princess, The Will Rogers Follies, and Caroline, or Change. Eternal thanks to husband Kurt, parents Renee and Dennis, piano teacher Dorothy Winnard, and theatrical mentors Neil Rothschild, Debbie Luce, Mary Elledge, and Ole Kittleson.  SOURCES Ain't Misbehavin, Original Broadway Cast Recording. RCA (1978) Ain't Misbehavin, starring Nell Carter and Andre DeShields, directed by Don Mischer. NBC Television (1982) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ANNIE COMPOSER: Charles Strouse LYRICIST: Martin Charnin BOOK: Thomas Meehan SOURCE: Harold Gray's comic strip Little Orphan Annie (1920s) DIRECTOR: Martin Charnin CHOREOGRAPHER: Peter Gennaro PRINCIPLE CAST: Andrea McArdle (Annie), Dorothy Loudon (Miss Hannigan), Reid Shelton (Warbucks) OPENING DATE: April 21, 1977 CLOSING DATE: Jan 02, 1983 PERFORMANCES: 2,377 SYNOPSIS: Annie is a young orphan who is under the dominating thumb of the orphanage's owner, the evil Miss Hannigan. When the richest man in the world, Oliver Warbucks, looks to adopt a child, Annie's life begins to turn around.  Amidst an increasingly concept-oriented Broadway lineup, the traditional book musical with a message about optimism from an orphan girl living through the Great Depression took cynical New York by storm, surprising critics and reminding producers of the possibilities of traditional material. According to historian Charles Kirsch the upbeat score and multiple movie adaptations have kept Annie firmly cemented in American pop culture. More importantly, it welcomed the “children's show” to Broadway, a musical in which the audience's aim is for children, with enough adult humor integrated to keep all parties engaged. Kirsch examines how subsequent children's musicals have not fared as well when they deviate from the formula created by Martin Charnin, Charles Strouse, and Thomas Meehan. Charles Kirsch is a 13-year old theater podcaster in New York City. He is the host of Backstage Babble on Apple Podcasts, in which he talks to actors, choreographers, designers, and other theater professionals. He is also one of BroadwayWorld's Kid Critics, and the author of a theater blog entitled Broadway Baby. His performing credits include acting in a reading of Doug Plaut's sitcom pilot The Mame and I, and several musicals at the 92nd Street Y. His greatest loves are performing, studying everything there is to know about theater, and reading.  SOURCES Annie, Original Broadway Cast Recording. Columbia Master Works (1977) Annie starring Carol Burnett and Aileen Quinn, directed by John Huston. Columbia Pictures (1982) Annie: A Theatre Memoir by Martin Charnin, published by Dutton (1977) Put On A Happy Face: A Broadway Memoir by Charles Strouse. Union Square Press (2008) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A CHORUS LINE COMPOSER: Marvin Hamlisch LYRICIST: Ed Kleban BOOK: Nichola Dante and James Kirkwood DIRECTOR: Michael Bennett CHOREOGRAPHER: Michael Bennett PRINCIPLE CAST: Donna McKechnie (Cassie), Priscilla Lopez (Diana), Robert LuPone (Zach) OPENING DATE: July 25th, 1975 CLOSING DATE: April 28th, 1990 PERFORMANCES: 6,137 SYNOPSIS: On an empty Broadway stage, a group of dancers have gathered for an audition for a new musical, directed and choreographed by Zach. Breaking the traditional rules of auditioning, Zach delves into the personal lives of each of the dancers, which includes his ex-lover Cassie, who has given up a promising career to return to the chorus.  Chronicling the lives of seventeen Broadway dancers as they audition for an ensemble, A Chorus Line shattered expectations as a new kind of musical. Its reliance on interviews with actual dancers qualified the show among the ranks of documentary drama, becoming the first major Broadway musical to approach subject matter in that way. Ron Fassler traces the Rashomon-like origins of the show, the advent of the workshop which became the standard method for musical production, and how Michael Bennett, Marvin Hamlisch, Ed Kleban, Nicholas Dante, and James Kirkwood created a docu-musical that transcended its show biz plot and found universality for multi generational audiences.  Ron Fassler is an author, playwright, director, actor and theatre critic. His acclaimed first book, Up in the Cheap Seats: A Historical Memoir of Broadway, tells the stories of how from the age of eleven he saw 200 Broadway shows over a four-year span—at an average ticket price of $3. Nathan Lane called it “Well worth the price of admission,” and it was selected as one of Playbill's “must-read theatre books of 2017.” His one-act plays Half Glasses and Having Words were chosen for the 2019 and 2020 William Inge Theatre Festival in Independence, Kansas. Please visit his website www.ronfassler.org. SOURCES A Chorus Line by Nicholas Dante, James Kirkwood, Edward Kleban, and Marvin Hamlisch, published by Applause Libretto Library (2000) A Chorus Line, Original Broadway Cast Recording. MasterWorks Broadway (2009) A Chorus Line, starring Michael Douglas and Alyson Reed, directed by Richard Attenborough. MGM (1985) Every Little Step, starring Bob Avian and Baayork Lee, directed by James Stern and Adam Del Deo. Sony Picture Classics (2009) A Chorus Line and The Musicals of Michael Bennett by Ken Mandelbaum. Published by St. Martin's Press (1989) On The Line by Robert Viagas, Baayork Lee, Thommie Walsh. Published by Limelight- 2nd Edition (2009) The Longest Line by Gary Stevens. Published by Applause Theatre & Cinema Books. 1st Edition (2000) A Chorus Line FAQ by Tom Rowan. Published by Applause (2015) What They Did For Love: The Untold Story Behind the Making of A Chorus Line by Denny Martin Flynn. Published by Bantam Books (1989) One Singular Sensation: The Michael Bennett Story by Kevin Kelly. Published by Doubleday (1989) Dancing Man by Bob Avian with Tom Santopietro. Published by University Press of Mississippi (2020) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

THE WIZ COMPOSER: Charlie Smalls LYRICIST: Charlie Smalls BOOK: William F. Brown SOURCE: L. Frank Baum's book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) DIRECTOR: Geoffrey Holder CHOREOGRAPHER: George Faison PRINCIPLE CAST: Andre DeShields (The Wiz), Mabel King (Evillene), Stephanie Mills (Dorothy),  OPENING DATE: Jan 5, 1975 CLOSING DATE: Jan 28, 1979 PERFORMANCES: 1,672 SYNOPSIS: During a violent tornado, Dorothy is transported from Kansas to the magical land of Oz. In order to go back home she must first speak with The Wiz. Accompanied by her friends The Scarecrow, The Tin Man, and The Cowardly Lion, Dorothy begins an adventure down the Yellow Brick Road to meet the Wiz.  Accessing the universal themes in L Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, The Wiz retold the classic story through a contemporary African-American lens. The show proved the potential for success in big-budget, fantasy stories with all Black casts. Jerrell L. Henderson traces the modes in which Black creatives and audiences were relegated to segregated theatres, how Black performers were cast in shows written by white individuals, and how marketing of musicals became focused on Black communities in relation to The Wiz.  Jerrell L. Henderson is a Director and Puppeteer. Upcoming Puppet Short Films include, Hamlin: La Revue Sombre with Handmade Puppet Dreams and Diamond's Dream with Chicago Children's Theatre. He performed his signature puppetry piece, I Am The Bear, this fall with Chicago International Puppet Festival's Living Room Tours. His shadow play, 3 American Myths: A Riff in Shadow & Light in 3 Rhythmic Movements was a finalist for a 2019 Jim Henson Foundation Grant. Recent directing credits include Mlima's Tale with Griffin Theatre (Jeff Award Nomination for Direction and Best Play) and Thurgood with Walnut Street Theatre. Other credits include The River with BoHo Theatre, Untitled with Inis Nua (Barrymore Award nomination for Outstanding Direction of a Play) and Something Like A War: A New Musical with 11th Hour Theatre. He received an MFA in Directing from Northwestern University, is a member of the Lincoln Center Directors Lab (2012), an Artistic Associate of Black Lives, Black Words, and a Henson Foundation sponsored participant at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center National Puppetry Conference (2020). SOURCES Elam, Harry, and David Krasner. African American Performance and Theater History: A Critical Reader. 1st ed., Oxford University Press, 2001. Hill, Errol, and James Hatch. A History of African American Theatre (Cambridge Studies in American Theatre and Drama, Series Number 18). Annotated, Cambridge University Press, 2006. Sanders, Leslie Catherine. The Development of Black Theater in America: From Shadows to Selves. Reprint, LSU Press, 1989. Simpson, Janice. “Pivotal Moments in Broadway's Black History.” Playbill, 20 Feb. 2019, www.playbill.com/article/pivotal-moments-in-broadways-black-history-com-342101. Weta. “How Helen Hayes Helped Desegregate the National Theatre.” Boundary Stones: WETA's Washington DC History Blog, 22 June 2016, boundarystones.weta.org/2016/06/22/how-helen-hayes-helped-desegregate-national-theatre. Woll, Allen. Black Musical Theatre: From Coontown to Dreamgirls. First Edition, Louisiana State Univ Pr, 1989. The Wiz, Original Cast Recording, Atlantic Records (1975) The Wiz by William F Brown and Charlie Smalls, published by Samuel French, Inc (1979) The Wiz starring Michael Jackson and Diana Ross, directed by Sidney Lumet, Universal Pictures (1978) The Wiz: Live! Starring Queen Latifah and Shanice Williams, directed by Matthew Diamond and Kenny Leon, NBC (2015) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

NO, NO NANETTE (1971) COMPOSER: Vincent Youmans LYRICIST: Irving Caesar, Otto Harbach BOOK: Otto Harbach, Frank Mandel DIRECTOR: Burt Shevelove CHOREOGRAPHER: Donald Saddler PRINCIPLE CAST: Ruby Keeler (Sue), Patsy Kelly (Pauline), Susan Watson (Nanette) OPENING DATE: Jan 19, 1971 CLOSING DATE: Feb 03, 1973 PERFORMANCES: 861 SYNOPSIS: In 1920s New York, Nanette is betrothed to Tom but she has never really experienced life because of her strict guardian, Sue. Before Nanette gets married, with the help of her maid Pauline, she decides to sneak away to the lascivious world of Atlantic City for one last adventure before she says “I do.”  Robert W Schneider illustrates the surprising success held by the 1971 revival of the 1925 musical comedy, No, No, Nanette. Amidst contemporary musicals whose scores and lyrics were specifically linked to the psyches of characters and whose narratives sought to challenge the collective perceptions of audiences, No, No, Nanette's subject matter seemed trite and its songs felt disconnected and superfluous. The aging Hollywood stars tied to the show, Busby Berkeley and Ruby Keeler, furthered the public's assumptions that this production would fail, and the Boston tryout led to major artistic changes. Upon opening, audiences and critics agreed that the show provided a welcome escape from the political turmoil of the day and it was a box office success. The financial victories of the production launched a craze of revivals adhering to director Burt Shevelove's traditionalist approach; honoring the original feel of the piece but tailoring its form for modern audiences. Conversely, this chapter dictates the tenets of revisionist revivals, which seek to reimagine existing works, and outlines other notable motives for reviving works on Broadway. Robert W. Schneider holds academic appointments at Penn State University, New York Film Academy, and Mount Union University, as well as serving as the Artistic Director for The J2 Spotlight Musical Theater Company and as an original programming producer at Feinstein's/54 Below in New York City. He is the host of the podcasts Behind The Curtain: Broadway's Living Legends, Gay Card Revoked, and This Was A Thing. For the past fifteen years Robert has been one of the most prolific leaders of online education in the arts. He is a proud member of SDC, AEA, and AGVA.  SOURCES No, No, Nanette, Revival Cast Recording, Columbia (1971) The Making of No, No, Nanette by Don Dunn, published by Citadel Press (1972) No, No, Nanette starring Bernice Claire and Alexander Gray, directed by Clarence G Badger, First National Pictures (1930) No, No, Nanette starring Anna Neagle and Zazu Pitts, directed by Herbert Wilcox, Suffolk Productions (1940) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

COMPANY COMPOSER: Stephen Sondheim LYRICIST: Stephen Sondheim BOOK: George Furth DIRECTOR: Hal Prince CHOREOGRAPHER: Michael Bennett PRINCIPLE CAST: Beth Howland (Amy), Dean Jones (Bobby), Elaine Stritch (Joanne) OPENING DATE: Apr 26, 1970 CLOSING DATE: Jan 01, 1972 PERFORMANCES: 705 SYNOPSIS: On his 35th birthday, bachelor Robert is confronted by his happily, and unhappily, married friends, as well as his three girlfriends, who all push him towards committing to another human being.  Stephen Sondheim had tremendous early success as a Broadway lyricist, but until the success of Company, his work as a composer could not be regarded as commercially successful. Based on a series of sketches about married couples by actor George Furth, Sondheim and director Hal Prince developed a musical which navigated a bachelor's relationships with his lovers and married friends. Rick Pender promotes Company's significance as an early book musical which, through Boris Aronson's design, Prince and Michael Bennett's staging, Jonathan Tunick's orchestrations, subject matter, and rough narrative, epitomized contemporary storytelling and broke away from the conventions of traditional musical theatre. Later revivals of the show staged by John Doyle and Marianne Elliott employed tactics which kept Company at the cutting edge of the art form and in dialogue with timely societal critique. Rick Pender- From 2004 to 2016 Rick Pender edited The Sondheim Review; in 2017 he launched EverythingSondheim.org. His book The Stephen Sondheim Encyclopedia was published in 2021. He has written about theater for Cincinnati CityBeat since it began publishing in 1994, and he was the paper's arts and entertainment editor from 1998 until 2006. Ohio's Society of Professional Journalists recognized him the state's best arts critic in 2002 and 2017. He contributed theater interviews to public radio station WVXU's weekly arts magazine for 15 years. Rick is a past chair of the American Theatre Critics Association. Rick's Book Available Here SOURCES Company by Stephen Sondheim and George Furth, published by Theatre Communications Group (1995) Company, Original Broadway Cast Recording. MasterWorks (1970) Original Cast Album: Company, starring Dean Jones and Elaine Stritch, directed by DA Pennebaker. New Video Group (1970 Stephen Sondheim's Company with the New York Philharmonic, starring Neil Patrick Harris and Patti LuPone, directed by Lonny Price. Image Entertainment (2012) Company, starring Raul Esparza and Barbara Walsh, directed by John Doyle. Image Entertainment (2008) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

PROMISES, PROMISES COMPOSER: Burt Bacharach LYRICIST: Hal David BOOK: Neil Simon SOURCE: The Apartment by I.A.L. Diamond and Billy Wilder (1960) DIRECTOR: Robert Moore CHOREOGRAPHER: Michael Bennett PRINCIPLE CAST: Jill O'Hara (Fran), Jerry Orbach (Chuck), Edward Winter (Sheldrake) OPENING DATE: Dec 01, 1968 CLOSING DATE: Jan 01, 1972 PERFORMANCES: 1,281 SYNOPSIS: CC Baxter is a young worker who is climbing the corporate ladder by lending out his apartment to married executives so they can have extramarital affairs without paying for a hotel. Baxter's conscience gets the better of him when his boss, Sheldrake, uses the apartment for himself and his mistress, Fran, the object of Baxter's affections.  David Spencer outlines the evolution of cohesive orchestrations which carried through the scores of Broadway musicals, examining the significance of the sound composer Burt Bacharach and lyricist Hal David lent to the musical Promises, Promises. Orchestrator Jonathan Tunick mimicked the sound of the team's pop hits and rendered a score with songs which were uniquely “liftable” and could stand on their own, free from context. Tunick's recording sensibilities led him to a prosperous career in which he redefined a pop music sound for Broadway musicals.  DAVID SPENCER is an award-winning musical dramatist, author, critic and musical theatre teacher. As lyricist-librettist: two musicals with composer Alan Menken: The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz (Ghostlight Records); Weird Romance (Columbia Masterworks, co-librettist: Alan Brennert); and the acclaimed colloquial English adaptation of La Bohème for the Public Theatre. As composer-lyricist-orchestrator: Theatreworks/USA's YA versions of The Phantom of the Opera and Les Misérables (librettist-director for both: Rob Barron). As author: The Musical Theatre Writer's Survival Guide (Heinemann); Alien Nation: Passing Fancy, an original novel based on the TV series (Pocket). A 20 year veteran of the teaching faculty of the BMI-Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop, he has also taught at HB Studio, Workshop Studio Theatre plus venues in and around London. SOURCES Promises, Promises, Original Cast Recording, United Artists (1968) Promises, Promises by Burt Bacharach, Hal David, Neil Simon, published by Random House (1968) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

HAIR COMPOSER: Galt MacDermot LYRICIST: Gerome Ragni, James Rado BOOK: Gerome Ragni, James Rado DIRECTOR: Tom O'Horgan CHOREOGRAPHER: Julie Arenal PRINCIPLE CAST: Lynn Kellogg (Sheila), James Rado (Claude), Gerome Ragni (Berger),  OPENING DATE: Apr 29, 1968 CLOSING DATE: Jul 01, 1972 PERFORMANCES: 1,750 SYNOPSIS: Claude, a young American, is called to serve in the United States army to fight the Vietnam War and questions whether he will go and fight for a war he sees as unjust, or flee the country and become a fugitive of the law.  A commentary on American hippie counterculture of the late 1960s, Hair established a new genre of rock musicals and broke ground in its portrayals of sex, sexuality, nudity, and drug use. Several of the songs from the show became chart-topping anthems. James Rado and Jerome Ragni's musical's opening at the Public Theatre allowed its controversial form and content to prove their marketability before a more mainstream Broadway run. Elizabeth Lara Wollman explores how Joseph Papp fostered the show and how his relinquishing of the rights altered his idea about commercial musicals, the staging of Gerald Freeman versus Tom O'Horgan, and why the musical became a red herring in the development of rock musicals. Elizabeth L. Wollman (Ph.D in Ethnomusicology, The Graduate Center, CUNY) is a professor of music at Baruch College, CUNY. Her research and teaching interests include the stage musical, the commercial theater industry, canonicity, historiography, failure, sexuality and gender, and the cultural history of New York City. She has published articles on the relationship between gender stereotypes and rock radio programming, the impact of the economy on the development of the Broadway musical, the critical and commercial reception of rock musicals, and New York's theater scene in the 1960s and 1970s. She is the author of The Theater Will Rock: A History of the Rock Musical, From Hair to Hedwig (University of Michigan Press, 2006), Hard Times: The Adult Musical in 1970s New York City (Oxford University Press, 2012) and A Critical Companion to the American Stage Musical (Bloomsbury/Methuen Drama, 2017). With Jessica Sternfeld she was co-editor of The Routledge Companion to the Contemporary Musical (2020) and is currently co-editor of the journal Studies in Musical Theatre. SOURCES Great Rock Musicals by Stanley Richards, published by Stein & Day Publishing (1979) Hair, Original Cast Recording. RCA Victor (1968) Hair starring John Savage and Treat Williams, directed by Milos Foreman. MGM Studios (1979) The Age of Hair: Evolution and Impact of Broadway's First Rock Musical by Barbara L Horn, published by Praeger (1991) The Theatre Will Rock: A History of the Rock Musical, from Hair to Hedwig by Elizabeth Lara Wollman, published by University of Michigan Press (2009) Let The Sun Shine In: The Genius of Hair by Scott Miller, published by Heinemann Drama (2003) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

CABARET COMPOSER: John Kander LYRICIST: Fred Ebb BOOK: Joe Masteroff SOURCE: Christopher Isherwood's The Berlin Stories (1945) DIRECTOR: Hal Prince CHOREOGRAPHER: Ron Field PRINCIPLE CAST: Bert Convy (Cliff), Joel Grey (Emcee), Jill Hayworth (Sally). Lotte Lenya (Schneider) OPENING DATE: Nov 20, 1966 CLOSING DATE: Sep 06, 1969 PERFORMANCES: 1,165 SYNOPSIS: American Clifford Bradshaw takes up residence in pre-war Berlin. While there he becomes enamored with cabaret singer Sally Bowles, and her divine decadence. As the Nazi's rise to power, Cliff wonders if he must flee Germany or take a stand against the Third Reich. Harold Prince's staging of Cabaret took audiences by surprise as it tossed aside all manner of theatrical conventions, reflecting the audience back at itself through a large mirror and challenging them with diegetic and nondiegetic song and dance routines. Taboo subject matter including queerness, sex, antisemitism, abortion, and the Holocaust came to the forefront of a Broadway musical for the first time. Bruce Kimmel explores the impact of the various elements that made Cabaret a seismic event. From the authentic performances of Lotte Lenya and Jill Haworth to the Weimar infused score of John Kander and Fred Ebb, as well as the star-making turn of Joel Grey, each element of this groundbreaking musical is explored to underline its collective power. Bruce Kimmel is a legendary Grammy-nominated producer of theatre music on CD, having produced over 180 albums, including Broadway and off-Broadway cast albums, singers, and concept recordings. He is also an award-winning songwriter and the author of twenty-one books. He wrote, directed, and starred in the cult movie hit, The First Nudie Musical, and co-created the story for the hit film, The Faculty, directed by Robert Rodriguez. As an actor, Mr. Kimmel guest-starred on most of the long-running television shows of the 1970s. SOURCES Cabaret: The Illustrated Book and Lyrics by Joe Masteroff, published by Newmarket Press (1999) Cabaret, Original Broadway Cast Recording. Columbia Masterworks (1966) Cabaret, starring Joel Grey and Liza Minnelli, directed by Bob Fosse. Allied Artists Pictures (1972) The Making Of Cabaret by Keith Garebian, published by Oxford University Press (2011) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

FIDDLER ON THE ROOF COMPOSER: Jerry Bock LYRICIST: Sheldon Harnick BOOK: Joseph Stein SOURCE: Sholem Aleichem's short stories Tevye the Dairyman (1894) DIRECTOR: Jerome Robbins CHOREOGRAPHER: Jerome Robbins PRINCIPLE CAST: Maria Karnilova (Golde), Joanna Merlin (Tzeitel), Zero Mostel (Tevye), OPENING DATE: Sep 22, 1964 CLOSING DATE: Jul 02, 1972 PERFORMANCES: 3,242 SYNOPSIS: Tevye, the local milkman, has five daughters that must enter into arranged marriages as dictated by the traditions of his culture. When Tzeitel, his eldest, chooses to make her own match, Tevye's world is turned upside down and traditions become vulnerable. After acclaimed musical successes commissioned by producers, Sheldon Harnick and Jerry Bock set out to write a musical which was of personal, familial interest to them. Based on a series of short stories by Sholem Alecheim, Fiddler on the Roof explores the importance of Jewish traditions to the inhabitants of a small, Russian village. Beth Burrier summarizes the complex identities of Jewish-American theatre artists working on Broadway, many of whom were attacked by the House Un-American Activities Committee or faced other forms of antisemitic discrimination in their lives. Although a liberal wave saw an onslaught of Jewish-American stories on Broadway, Fiddler on the Roof was deemed risky by producers because its characters were Russian villagers, not Americans. Upon opening with a seismic performance by the blacklisted Zero Mostel, and despite a pleased general public, Yiddish writers took issue with the liberal message of the show. Work by director/ choreographer Jerome Robbins posited the piece as a new sort of musical, where the authors took a back seat to the vision of the director. Beth Burrier is head of musical theatre at Manhattanville College in Purchase New York, and a principal conductor and the Associate Artistic Director of the College Light Opera Company in Falmouth, Massachusetts. She holds a Master of Music summa cum laude from Ithaca College, and a Bachelor of Music Education summa cum laude with honors from Otterbein University. Beth has been on the faculty at Baldwin Wallace and Penn State, and has taught Music Theatre History, Music Theory, Acting the Song, Audition Technique, Voice and Piano. National tours include RENT, The Full Monty, and Beehive the Sixties Musical.   SOURCES Fiddler on the Roof by Jerry Bock, Sheldon Harnick, and Joseph Stein, published by Limelight (2004) Fiddler on the Roof, Original Broadway Cast Recording. RCA (1964) Fiddler on the Roof, starring Topol and Neva Small, directed by Norman Jewison. MGM Films (1971) Fiddler: Miracle of Miracles, starring Sheldon Harnick and Lin Manuel Miranda, directed by Max Lewkowicz. Samuel Goldwyn Films (2019) The Making of a Musical: Fiddler on the Roof by Altman, Richard and Mervyn Kaufman. New York: Crown Publishers, 1971.  Wonder of Wonders: A Cultural History of Fiddler on the Roof, by Alisa Solomon, published by Picador (2014) Tradition!: The Highly Improbable, Ultimately Triumphant Broadway-to Hollywood Star of Fiddler on the Roof, the World's Most Beloved Musical by Barbara Isenberg, published by St. Martin's Press (2014) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

HELLO DOLLY COMPOSER: Jerry Herman LYRICIST: Jerry Herman BOOK: Michael Stewart SOURCE: Thornton Wilder's play The Merchant of Yonkers (1938) DIRECTOR: Gower Champion CHOREOGRAPHER: Gower Champion PRINCIPLE CAST: David Burns (Vandergelder), Carol Channing (Dolly), Charles Nelson Reilly (Cornelius) OPENING DATE: Jan 16, 1964 CLOSING DATE: Dec 27, 1970 PERFORMANCES: 2,844 SYNOPSIS: Widowed matchmaker Dolly Gallagher Levi has been tasked to find a wife for the cantankerous, well-known, half-a-millionaire, Horace Vandergelder. Dolly doesn't need to look too hard as she is the one who plans to marry Horace. The unparalleled success of the title song from Jerry Herman's Hello, Dolly! is explored through the succinct multiple meanings in its lyrics and the iconography associated with its original staging by Gower Champion and executed by Carol Channing. The history of the song (as popularized by Louis Armstrong), the title of the musical, and the many famous actors who appeared in its original run and subsequent productions are analyzed within the equation of one of the most recognizable sequences in Broadway history. 1995 Revival director Lee Roy Reams examines the way impactful branding, casting, and design decisions made by infamous producer, David Merrick, cemented Hello, Dolly! within pop culture history. Lee Roy Reams' ten Broadway credits run the gamut from Sweet Charity, Applause, Lorelei, Hello, Dolly and 42nd Street to La Cage aux Folles, Beauty and the Beast and The Producers. SOURCES FURTHER READING/VIEWING/LISTENING RESOURCES Hello, Dolly, Original Cast Recording. RCA Victor (1964) Hello, Dolly starring Walter Matthau and Barbra Streisand, directed by Gene Kelly, 20th Century Fox (1969) Showtune: A Memoir by Jerry Herman, published by Dutton (1996) Filichia, Peter. The Great Parade: Broadway's Astonishing, Never-to-Be-Forgotten 1963-1964 Season. St. Martin's Press, 2015. Goldman, William. The Season: A Candid Look at Broadway. Limelight Editions, 1984. Ilson, Carol. Harold Prince: A Director's Journey. Limelight Editions, 2004. Mordden, Ethan. Open a New Window. Palgrave Macmillan, 2002. Prince, Hal. Contradictions: Notes on twenty-six years in the theatre. Dodd, Mead; First edition, 1974. Shapiro, Eddie. Nothing Like a Dame: Conversations with the Great Women of Musical Theater. Oxford University Press; Reprint edition, 2014. Viertel, Jack. The Secret Life of the American Musical: How Broadway Shows Are Built. Sarah Crichton Books, 2016. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

THE FANTASTICKS COMPOSER: Harvey Schmidt LYRICIST: Tom Jones BOOK: Tom Jones SOURCE: Edmond Rostand's play Les Romanesques (1894) DIRECTOR: Word Baker PRINCIPLE CAST: Rita Gardner (Luisa), Kenneth Nelson (Matt), Jerry Orbach (El Gallo) OPENING DATE: May 3, 1960 CLOSING DATE: January 13, 2002 PERFORMANCES: 17,162 SYNOPSIS: Matt and Luisa are two star struck lovers separated by a wall their feuding fathers erected. They escape the confines of their homes and struggle to form a relationship based on trust and understanding.   David Arthur examines the socio-political climate which allowed the intimate, off-Broadway musical The Fantasticks to become the longest-running show in American history. Abandoning a desire to adapt Les Romanesques as a cowboy-infused musical hoedown, Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt delivered producer Lore Noto a lyrical folktale that took Greenwich Village by storm and was lauded by notable celebrities, if greeted stoically by major critics. The small cast musical with experimental subject matter paved the way for more commercially successful musicals to incubate in off-Broadway theatres, such as Little Shop of Horrors, Nunsense, and Hedwig and the Angry Inch. As a long-standing member of the Lehman Engel BMI workshop, he is the recipient of the Jerry Harrington Award. In addition to writing the book and lyrics for the NYMF award winning, ABOUT FACE with music by Jeffrey Lodin, David along with Brian Lasser, contributed material to the MAC award winning revue, HERE'S TO OUR FRIENDS. For the concert stage he has written for Randy Graff, Judy Kuhn, Karen Mason, Marin Mazzie, Donna Murphy, and Barbara Walsh. Along with the music, lyrics and book for SARATOGA TRUNK SONGS, current projects include the book and lyrics for NOBODY SLEEPS WELL IN CASABLANCA with music by Douglas J. Cohen, and the book and lyrics for ODDLY ENOUGH with music by Mary Feinsinger, along with a new piece, SPEAK OF THE DEVIL with book, music and lyrics by David Arthur.   SOURCES The Fantasticks, Original Cast Recording, MGM (1960) The Fantasticks by Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt, published by Applause Libretto Library (2000) The Fantasticks starring John Davison and Susan Watson, directed by George Schaefer, NBC (1964) The Fantasticks starring Jean Louisa Kelly and Joey MacIntyre, directed by Michael Ritchie, United Artists (2000) Try To Remember: The Fantasticks starring Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt, directed by Eli Kabillio, Zeitgeist Films (2003) The Amazing Story of The Fantasticks: America's Longest Running Play by Donald C Farber and Robert Viagas, published by Citadel Press (1991) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Continuing the tradition of Show Boat and Oklahoma!, Gypsy furthered the parameters of a musical drama that went beyond the bounds of musical comedy. It is significant for its critical acclaim as a complicated and layered piece of literature within the American musical theatre canon. Robert W. Schneider explores how 1950s method acting, and their need for objective and subtext, laid the foundation of Arthur Laurents' psychologically devastating book and how actors since have found so much richness in the text that every actor who has the chance to play the monstrous Rose has varied greatly in their approaches, as explored through the Jule Styne/Stephen Sondheim song “Small World.” and major actresses who have played Rose: Ethel Merman, Angela Lansbury, Tyne Daly, Bernadette Peters, Patti LuPone, and Imelda Staunton.  Robert W Schneider- Robert holds academic appointments at Penn State University, New York Film Academy, and Mount Union University, as well as serving as the Artistic Director for The J2 Spotlight Musical Theater Company and as an original programming producer at Feinstein's/54 Below in New York City. He is the host of the podcasts Behind The Curtain: Broadway's Living Legends, Gay Card Revoked, and This Was A Thing. For the past fifteen years Robert has been one of the most prolific leaders of online education in the arts. He is a proud member of SDC, AEA, and AGVA.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

WEST SIDE STORY COMPOSER: Leonard Bernstein LYRICIST: Stephen Sondheim BOOK: Arthur Laurents SOURCE: William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet (1595) DIRECTOR: Jerome Robbins CHOREOGRAPHER: Jerome Robbins PRINCIPLE CAST: Larry Kert (Tony), Carol Lawrence (Maria), Chita Rivera (Anita) OPENING DATE: Sep 26, 1957 CLOSING DATE: Jun 27, 1959 PERFORMANCES: 732 SYNOPSIS: Romeo and Juliet is now set amongst to the turf warfare of 1950s New York City, as two rival gangs, The Sharks and The Jets, compete for dominance. The gangs are forced to confront their own mortality when Tony, the leader of the Jets, falls in love with Maria, the sister of the leader of the Sharks.   Jennifer Delac outlines the ways Jerome Robbins' work on West Side Story established a new model in which the director and choreographer could serve uniquely as an auteur. The chapter breaks down key plot points in the Bernstein/Stephen Sondheim musical which are conveyed through dance and traces the influence the show had on later dance-centric musicals by the likes of Bob Fosse, Tommy Tune, and Susan Stroman.  Jennifer Delac- A graduate from Fordham University (Lincoln Center) with a BA in Theatre, Jennifer is now pursuing her MFA in Directing at the Pennsylvania State University under the mentorship of Susan H. Schulman. She has directed, choreographed, and stage managed in NYC and regionally throughout the United States. Select credits include: Diana (Directing Intern, Broadway), The Beast in the Jungle (as Assistant to the Director to Susan Stroman, Vineyard Theatre), Song From the Uproar (AD, LA Opera/BMP), The Wong Kids (Choreographer/ASM, Ma-Yi Theatre), Disenchanted (Director/Choreographer, Festival 56), and Mr. Burns (Choreographer/Assoc. Director, Fordham). Carla Mirabal Rodríguez (she/her) is a Boston based actor, director, and producer originally from San Juan, Puerto Rico and is thrilled to be working with Central Square Theater! She has worked with theatre companies such as Boston Playwrights' Theatre, Company One, Teatro Chelsea, and is the Artistic Assistant at The Huntington. Recent credits include Macbeth (Malcolm, Newton Theatre Co.), Temporary (Director, Teatro Chelsea's A-Típico New Play Festival), and Romeo + Juliet (AD/understudy, Apollinaire Theatre Co. and Teatro Chelsea). She holds a BA in Theatre Performance from Northeastern University. www.CarlaMirabalRodriguez.com Caridad Svich- Caridad Svich received a 2012 OBIE Award for Lifetime Achievement in the theatre, a 2012 Edgerton Foundation New Play Award and NNPN rolling world premiere for Guapa, and the 2011 American Theatre Critics Association Primus Prize for her play The House of the Spirits, based Isabel Allende's novel. Her play Red Bike received an NNPN rolling world premiere, and her play Ushuaia Blue will premiere at the Contemporary American Theatre Festival in 2021. Her most recent book is on Hedwig and the Angry Inch (Routledge, 2019). SOURCES West Side Story: The Jets and The Sharks and the Making of a Classic by Richard Barrios, published by Running Press (2020) Something's Coming, Something Good: West Side Story and the American Imagination by Misha Berson, published by Applause Books (2011) A Place for Us: West Side Story and New York by Julia L. Foulkes, published by University of Chicago Press (2016) Mainly on Directing: Gypsy, West Side Story and Other Musicals by Arthur Laurens, published by Knopf (2009) West Side Story: Cultural Perspectives of an American Musical by Elizabeth Wells, published by Scarecrow Press (2010) The Making of West Side Story by Keith Garebian, published by ECW Press (1995) Somewhere: The Life of Jerome Robbins by Amanda Vaill, published by Broadway Books (2008) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

MY FAIR LADY COMPOSER: Frederick Loewe LYRICIST: Alan Jay Lerner BOOK: Alan Jay Lerner SOURCE: Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw (1913) DIRECTOR: Moss Hart CHOREOGRAPHER: Hanya Holm PRINCIPLE CAST: Julie Andrews (Eliza), Rex Harrison (Higgins), Stanley Holloway (Doolittle) OPENING DATE: March 15th, 1956 CLOSING DATE: September 29th, 1962 PERFORMANCES: 2717 SYNOPSIS: Celebrated phonetician Henry Higgins makes a bet that he can pass lowly flowerseller Eliza Doolittle off as a Duchess through the simple means of teaching her how to speak correctly. Based on George Bernard Shaw's politically sharp drama, Pygmalion, My Fair Lady was a major musical success which helped cement Lerner and Loewe, as well as performers Julie Andrews and Rex Harrison, in American pop culture history. This chapter explores how character composition evolved with the casting of classically trained Rex Harrison, an actor who was not a singer. Filichia examines the importance of strong vocal technique in the Golden Age and how those with limited voices were often not successful in carrying a musical, as well as how the cementing of “speak-sing” trained audiences to forgive the singer to focus on their acting and how that opened the doors to non-musical artists such as Zero Mostel, Sid Cesar, Vivian Leigh and Shirley Booth. Peter Filichia has written about theater for The Star-Ledger, TheaterWeek; Playbill, Theatermania, Broadway Select, Encore and MasterworksBroadway. He's written six books on theater, including three editions of Let's Put on a Musical.  This four-term president of the Drama Desk Awards serves on its current nominating committee as well as those for the Lucille Lortel Awards and Theatre World Awards, whose ceremony he writes and emcees. He's a National Endowment for the Arts assessor, Cincinnati Conservatory of Music critic-in-residence, musical theater judge for ASCAP's awards, Broadway Radio commentator, and creator of his one-man show A Personal History of the American Theater.  FURTHER READING/VIEWING/LISTENING RESOURCES Dominic, McHugh. Loverly: the life and times of My fair lady. Oxford University Press. Keith Garebian. Making of My Fair Lady. ECW Press. Alan Jay Lerner. The Street Where I Live. W. W. Norton & Co. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

THE THREEPENNY OPERA COMPOSER: Kurt Weill LYRICIST: Bertolt Brecht BOOK: Bertolt Brecht (Adaptation by Marc Blitzstein) DIRECTOR: Carmen Capalbo PRINCIPLE CAST: Beatrice Arthur (Lucy), Lotte Lenya (Jenny), Scott Merrill (Macheath) OPENING DATE: March 10th, 1954 CLOSING DATE: May 30th, 1954 PERFORMANCES: 96 SYNOPSIS: Polly Peachum marries the infamous robber Mack the Knife, much to the chagrin of her parents. In order to end the marriage, her parents and various citizens of the morally bankrupt town concoct a plan to have Mack The Knife arrested and executed.  A play with music by dramatist Bertolt Brecht and composer Kurt Weill, The Threepenny Opera is significant as a German political satire which has since become popular in the United States. Brecht's theatrical theories have had huge significance on the way theatre is presented globally and Weill's cabaret score influenced later American composers such as Kander and Ebb. Several songs from the show have become popular standards since its premiere. Today, it is best known for kicking off “the off-Broadway” musical, a musical that performs in more intimate spaces and offers more experimental, as opposed to commercial, work. Lauren Mack traces how the musical made its way to the United States, the political and social climate that welcomed it, and how audiences were trained to expand their definition of what defines a theatrical space. Lauren T. Mack (they/them) is a NYC-based actor & writer. Lauren has appeared onstage in NYC at the York Theatre, NY Fringe Festival, IRT, the PIT, and on stages throughout the US & France. Lauren's voiceover work ranges from Ford Motors to audioplay meditations with Fullmetal Workshop. Lauren also produces award-winning indies such as CAT PLANET (2017 TFF: Best Web Series), and recently appeared in VELOUR (2020 Official Selection, QueerX FF). They teach acting, speech, and voice/movement at New York Film Academy, Trinity College, as well as throughout India and France. Proud member of Actor's Equity and a Key with Ring of Keys. LaurenTMack.com SOURCES The Threepenny Opera, Original Off-Broadway Cast Recording. MGM (1954) The Threepenny Opera, starring Lotte Lenya and Rudolf Forster, directed by G.W. Pabst. Tobis Filmkunst (1931) The Threepenny Opera by Bertolt Brecht, published by Methuen Drama (2015) Love Song: The Lives of Kurt Weill and Lotte Lenya, published by St. Martin's Press (2012) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

GUYS AND DOLLS COMPOSER: Frank Loesser LYRICIST: Frank Loesser BOOK: Abe Burrows and Jo Swerling DIRECTOR: George S. Kauffman CHOREOGRAPHER: Michael Kidd PRINCIPLE CAST: Robert Alda (Sky), Isabel Bigley (Sarah), Vivian Blaine (Adelaide), Sam Levene (Nathan) OPENING DATE: Nov 24, 1950 CLOSING DATE: Nov 28, 1953 PERFORMANCES: 1,200 SYNOPSIS: Gambler Nathan Detroit needs $1000 to secure a place for his illegal games. When he runs into fellow gambler, Sky Masterson, he bets him $1000 that Sky cannot take the pious Sister Sarah Brown out on a date.  Producers enchanted by Damon Runyon's short story The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown sought to have it adapted into a musical. Book writer Abe Burrows suggested the benefits of introducing a secondary couple whose storyline could comedically compliment the romantic leads, but as he developed the new characters, their plot quickly became intertwined with the original love story. Guys and Dolls became a show with equally significant, dual narratives. When character actor Sam Levene was cast as Nathan Detroit, his lack of musical talent dictated major artistic decisions in the development of the libretto. Thomas S Hischak seeks to outline the development of Guys and Dolls as a timeless “musical fable” and comment on the reasons for its lasting success, focusing on how each song revealed new information the audience and how the plot of the show was so tightly constructed it made every element interdependent on one another to succeed.  Thomas Hischak is the author of over thirty books on theatre, film, and popular music. Among his works on the musical theatre are The Oxford Companion to the American Musical; The Rodgers and Hammerstein Encyclopedia; Word Crazy: Broadway Lyricists; The Jerome Kern Encyclopedia; The Mikado to Matilda: The British Musical on the New York Stage; and Musical Misfires: Three Decades of Broadway Musical Heartbreak (with Mark A. Robinson). He is Emeritus Professor of Theatre at the State University of New York at Cortland and a Fulbright scholar who has taught and directed in Greece, Lithuania, and Turkey. Website: www.thomashischak.com SOURCES Guys and Dolls, Original Broadway Cast Recording. Decca (1950) Guys and Dolls, 1992 Revival Cast Recording. Masterworks Broadway (1992) Guys and Dolls, starring Marlon Brando and Frank Sinatra, directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz. The Samuel Goldwyn Company (1955) Guys and Dolls: Off The Record, starring Nathan Lane and Faith Prince, directed by Gail Levin. KDEQ Television (1992) The Making of Guys and Dolls by Keith Garebian, published by Mosaic Press (2010) A Most Remarkable Fella: Frank Loesser and the Guys and Dolls in his Life by Susan Loesser, published by Donald I. Fine, Inc. (1993) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

OKLAHOMA COMPOSER: Richard Rodgers LYRICIST: Oscar Hammerstein II BOOK: Oscar Hammerstein II SOURCE: Lynn Riggs play Green Grow The Lilacs (1930) DIRECTOR: Rouben Mamoulian CHOREOGRAPHER: Agnes DeMille PRINCIPLE CAST: Howard DaSilva (Jud), Alfred Drake (Curly), Celeste Holm (Ado Annie), Joan Roberts (Laurey) OPENING DATE: Mar 31, 1943 CLOSING DATE: May 29, 1948 PERFORMANCES: 2,218 SYNOPSIS: Laurey, a young girl living in the Oklahoma territory, must choose between two men to accompany her to the box social: Curly, an attractive cowboy and Jud, a sinister farmhand, whose emotional instability might lead to Curly's death.  Building on the earlier success of Show Boat, Oklahoma! furthered the storytelling capabilities of a book musical, shocking audiences with its commonplace opening, fusing the narrative with a dream ballet, and unifying all elements to tell one story. The musical is also significant as the first artistic collaboration between composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II. Kevin David Thomas explores how the musical was not predicted for success, the contributions of choreographer Anges DeMille and director Rouben Mamoulian, the importance of Decca Records documenting its original cast through an audio recording, and the legacy of the musical in the national discourse.  Kevin David Thomas is an actor, music director, broadway coach, and co-host of the acclaimed podcast, ‘Behind the Curtain: Broadway's Living Legends'. He has been on faculty at the Professional Conservatory of Musical Theater at NYFA for 10 years. Kevin performed in the Broadway revivals of A Little Night Music (cast recording) and Les Misérables. As a music director/musician specializing in new works: A Tale of Two Cities (Broadway; asst to MD), Little House on the Prairie (Nat'l Tour; Asst Music Sup), Marvelous Wonderettes: Dream On (world premiere; cast recording). He is a graduate of Baldwin Wallace University. SOURCES Oklahoma, Original Cast Recording, Decca (1943) Oklahoma!: The Complete Book and Lyrics of the Broadway Musical by Oscar Hammerstein and Richard Rodgers, published by Applause Libretto Library (2010) Oklahoma starring Shirley Jones and Gordon MacRae, directed by Fred Zinnemann, RKO Radio (1955) Oklahoma starring Josefina Gabrielle and Hugh Jackman, directed by Trevor Nunn, Image Entertainment (1999) OK! The Story of Oklahoma!: A Celebration of America's Most Beloved Musical by Max Wilk, published by Applause Books (2002) Oklahoma: The Making of An American Musical by Tim Carter, published by Yale University Press (2007) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

PAL JOEY COMPOSER: Richard Rodgers LYRICIST: Lorenz Hart BOOK: John O'Hara SOURCE: John O'Hara's short stories (1930s) DIRECTOR: George Abbott CHOREOGRAPHER: Robert Alton PRINCIPLE CAST: Leila Ernst (Linda), Gene Kelly (Joey), Vivienne Segal (Vera),  OPENING DATE: Dec 25, 1940 CLOSING DATE: Nov 29, 1941 PERFORMANCES: 374 SYNOPSIS: John O'Hara's short stories tell the tale of Chicago huckster Joey Evans who has dreams of opening up his own nightclub. Penniless, he seduces Vera, a wealthy socialite, while at the same time stringing along the naïve lovestruck Linda.  John O'Hara's adaptation of his own serialized characters with Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart engrossed audiences in the disreputable universe of its titular character. Pal Joey's unsentimental treatment of nightclub life and uncensored sex appeal were controversial and divided the opinions of critics and audiences in 1940. Though a relative success by contemporary standards, it was only decades later that the score resurfaced in the zeitgeist thanks to hit versions of “Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered”. A new generation of popular recordings and a studio album led to a revival which, thanks to the developing scope of narratives told through musical theatre, was warmly received. Laurence Maslon places Pal Joey in the timeline of musicals with dark subjects.This chapter places Pal Joey in the timeline of musicals with dark subjects. Laurence Maslon is an arts professor at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, as well as associate chair of the Graduate Acting Program. He is the writer and coproducer of the American Masters/PBS documentary, Sammy Davis, Jr.: I've Gotta Be Me. He is also the host and producer of Broadway to Main Street (winner of the 2019 ASCAP Foundation/Deems Taylor Award for Radio Broadcast). His books include Broadway to Main Street: How Show Music Enchanted America (Oxford University Press) and the updated third edition companion volume to the PBS series Broadway: The American Musical. He edited the two-volume set American Musicals (1927-1969), published by the Library of America. He was written for the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the New Yorker.  SOURCES Pal Joey, Studio Cast Recording, Columbia Records (1950) Pal Joey by Lorenz Hart, John O'Hara, Richard Rodgers, published by Penguin Classics (2016) Pal Joey starring Rita Hayworth and Frank Sinatra, directed by George Sidney, Columbia Pictures (1957) Pal Joey: The History of a Heel by Julianne Lindberg, published by Oxford University Press (2020) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

THE CRADLE WILL ROCK COMPOSER: Marc Blitzstein LYRICIST: Marc Blitzstein BOOK: Marc Blitzstein DIRECTOR: Orson Welles PRINCIPLE CAST: Howard DaSilva (Foreman), Will Geer (Mister), Olive Stanton (Moll) OPENING DATE: June 16th, 1937 CLOSING DATE: April 02, 1938 PERFORMANCES: 131 SYNOPSIS: Set in the fictional “Steeltown, USA,” everyman Larry Foreman attempts to get his fellow workers to unionize against the greedy businessman Mr. Mister who controls the entire town's work force, press, and religious organizations.  Johanna Pinzler traces the development of Marc Blitzstein's The Cradle Will Rock, to date the only Broadway musical ever shut down by the United States government and argues its significance as a work that fused music and text in radically new ways. As part of Franklin Delano Roosevelt's New Deal, the United States launched the Federal Theatre Project, a nationwide effort to employ people in the performing arts, and Project #891, a classics-oriented subdivision of the project, opted to produce Blitzstein's controversial, pro-union musical under the direction of Orson Welles and the producer John Houseman. When the Works Progress Administration circulated a memo restricting the performance of new works-- a suspicious ordinance which wreaked of censorship-- and armed federal guards blockaded the theatre on opening night, Cradle opened in a completely unexpected fashion. Working around stringent union rules and limitations placed by the WPA, members of the cast and orchestra pulled off the performance as an impromptu exercise in free speech, rising from the audience when their cues came and never setting foot on the stage. This guerilla-style theatre informed future Broadway works which employed a minimalist or paired down approach to theatricality. Johanna Pinzler is an award winning theatre director and educator. She directs at regional theatres and serves as an Artistic Associate and a Resident Director at Summer Repertory Theatre in Santa Rosa, California where she spends most summers working with students from top theatre programs around the country. She is an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Acting and Directing at Marymount Manhattan College and serves on the faculty of the Professional Conservatory of Musical Theatre at New York Film Academy teaching Directing, Musical Theatre Performance and Comedy. She lives in Brooklyn with her wonderful family and has an MFA in Acting from Brooklyn College, CUNY. SOURCES The Cradle Will Rock Original Cast Recording. Musicraft (1938) The Cradle Will Rock Original London Cast Recording. Polydor (1985) Cradle Will Rock, starring Hank Azaria and Cary Elwes, directed by Tim Robbins. Touchstone Pictures (1999) The Cradle Will Rock by Marc Blitzstein, published by Random House (1938)  Cradle Will Rock: The Movie and the Moment by Tim Robbins, published by Newmarket Press (1999) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

PORGY AND BESS COMPOSER: George Gershwin LYRICIST: Ira Gershwin, DuBose Heyward BOOK: DuBose Heyward SOURCE: Porgy by DuBose Heyward (1925)  DIRECTOR: Rouben Mamoulian PRINCIPLE CAST: Anne Brown (Bess), John W. Bubbles (Sportin' Life), Todd Duncan (Porgy),  OPENING DATE: October 10th, 1935 CLOSING DATE: January 25th, 1936 PERFORMANCES: 124 SYNOPSIS: When the murderous Crown abandons his lover Bess, a disabled beggar, Porgy, vows to protect her. When Crown vows to return and take Bess away, Porgy and Bess's love for one another is thrown into peril.  With a score and libretto by George and Ira Gershwin with DuBose Heyward respectively, Porgy and Bess tells the controversial love story of a disabled Black man named Porgy through the style of grand opera. The premiere production featured a troupe of classically trained Black singers and was significant for the way it fused American folk music with classical orchestrations. Key songs became standards in their day, and ‘Summertime' maintains its popularity as a jazz cover. Davóne Tines explores the complexity of this piece, specifically how it relates to the black experience being created through a white lens.  Davóne Tines- Heralded as a "singer of immense power and fervor" and “[one] of the most powerful voices of our time” (@latimes) "the immensely gifted American bass-baritone Davóne Tines has won acclaim, and advanced the field of classical music." (@nytimes) this “next generation leader (Time Magazine) is a path-breaking artist at the intersection of many histories, cultures, and aesthetics, his work blends opera, spirituals, gospel, and anthems, as a means to tell a deeply personal story of perseverance and human connection. SOURCES Porgy and Bess Members of the Original Broadway Cast Recording. Decca (1940) Porgy and Bess, starring Dorothy Dandridge and Sidney Poitier, directed by Otto Preminger. Columbia Pictures (1959) The Strange Career of Porgy and Bess: Race, Culture, and America's Most Famous Opera by Ellen Noonan, Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press (2012) The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess: A 75th Anniversary Celebration by Robin Thompson, Amadeus (2010) “On My Way”: The Untold Story of Rouben Mamoulian, George Gershwin, and Porgy and Bess by Joseph Horowitz, W.W. Norton & Company (2013) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ANYTHING GOES COMPOSER: Cole Porter LYRICIST: Cole Porter BOOK: Guy Bolton and P.G. Wodehouse, revisions by Howard Lindsay & Russell Crouse DIRECTOR: Howard Lindsay CHOREOGRAPHER: Robert Alton PRINCIPLE CAST: William Gaxton (Billy), Ethel Merman (Reno), Victor Moore (Moonface) OPENING DATE: Nov 21, 1934 CLOSING DATE: Nov 16, 1935 PERFORMANCES: 420 SYNOPSIS: Set on a luxury liner that is sailing from New York to London, Billy, a lovelorn stock broker, attempts to win back his true love, Hope, while being guided in matters of the heart by brassy entertainer Reno Sweeney.  Robert W. Schneider argues that the oft-revived, oft-edited book musical, Anything Goes, houses a depth of social and political satire that was so topical and current upon its premiere that it is regularly overlooked by artists and audiences approaching the work. An in-depth analyses of Cole Porter's lyrics for select list songs in the show reveal commentary on American pop culture which align with the themes in the piece and suggest characters' milieu but, when studied more closely, hint at more subversive implications and taboo practices. The breakdowns demonstrate how a close reading of Anything Goes' score may provide readers with a sense of Porter's views on American life as well as his prowess as a lyricist. Robert W. Schneider holds academic appointments at Penn State University, New York Film Academy, and Mount Union University, as well as serving as the Artistic Director for The J2 Spotlight Musical Theater Company and as an original programming producer at Feinstein's/54 Below in New York City. He is the host of the podcasts Behind The Curtain: Broadway's Living Legends, Gay Card Revoked, and This Was A Thing. For the past fifteen years Robert has been one of the most prolific leaders of online education in the arts. He is a proud member of SDC, AEA, and AGVA. SOURCES Anything Goes, London Symphony Recording. Angel Records (1989) Anything Goes, starring Bing Crosby and Ethel Merman, directed by Lewis Milestone. Paramount Pictures (1936) The Colgate Comedy Hour: Anything Goes, starring Frank Sinatra and Ethel Merman, directed by Sid Smith. NBC Studios (1954) Just About Anything Goes: The National Theatre at Work by Robert Butler, published by NT Publications (2002) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

OF THEE I SING COMPOSER: George Gershwin LYRICIST: Ira Gershwin BOOK: George S. Kaufman, Morrie Ryskind DIRECTOR: George S. Kaufman CHOREOGRAPHER: Chester Hale PRINCIPLE CAST: William Gaxton (Wintergreen), Victor Moore (Throttlebottom), Lois Moran (Mary) OPENING DATE: Dec 26, 1931 CLOSING DATE: Jan 14, 1933 PERFORMANCES: 441 SYNOPSIS: John P Wintergreen is a presidential candidate who needs a wife. When a national contest is held to find a potential bride, Wintergreen is paired with America's sweetheart Diana Deveraux, but he soon realizes that he is in love with Mary Turner, the contest's organizer.   Of Thee I Sing is the result of George S. Kaufman and Morrie Ryskind's desire to write a musical satire with George and Ira Gershwin that could criticize the United States' political party system without being watered down for mainstream audiences. Apart from its satirical comedy, the musical is notable for the way the score and lyrics tie in closely with the rest of the libretto, its long stretches without songs aside from underscoring, and its early use of projection on the American stage. Additionally, this musical marks the first pairing of the theatrical team William Gaxton and Victor Moore. The show was an immediately popular success in its Boston tryout and subsequent New York run, earning praise from critics, audiences, and even the politicians evidently ridiculed by the storyline. Ultimately, Of Thee I Sing was recognized for its innovative achievements by becoming the first musical to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, a controversial decision which helped to elevate the artform of musical comedy and pave the way for more inventive musicals to follow. Laura Frankos outlines the ways Of Thee I Sing was a theatrical endeavor with a lasting impact. Laura Frankos is the author of The Broadway Musical Quiz Book (Applause Books, 2010). She is a regular contributor to CastAlbumReviews.com, and previously authored a blog on unusual musical theatre history, The Great White Wayback Machine. She has also written a mystery novel, St. Oswald's Niche, and short fiction in the science fiction and fantasy genres. Her latest novel, Broadway Revival (2022), has a time traveler curing Gershwin's tumor and altering the course of Golden Age Broadway. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, novelist Harry Turtledove. SOURCES Atkinson, Brooks. “Of Thee I Sing,” New York Times, January 3, 1932 Atkinson, Brooks. “PULITZER LAURELS; In Which the Play Committee Jumps Aboard the Band Wagon and Turns Its Back on the Drama.” The New York Times, 8 May 1932. “Definition of Throttlebottom | Dictionary.Com.” Www.Dictionary.Com, 2021. Fischer, Heinz D. The Pulitzer Prize Archive, Part D: Drama/Comedy Awards 1917-1996. Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter Saur, 1998. Furia, Philip. Ira Gershwin: The Art of the Lyricist. Oxford University Press, 1997. Gershwin, Ira. Lyrics on Several Occasions. New York: Alfred Knopf, 1959. Jablonski, Edward. Gershwin: A Biography. New York: Doubleday, 1987. Mantle, Burns. “Speaking of Pulitzer Prizes,” New York Daily News, May 8, 1932. Stone, Percy N. “Ira Gershwin's Light Is Shining Without George's Reflected Glory.” New York Herald Tribune, Dec. 1931. Of Thee I Sing, Revival Cast Recording, Foyer (1952) Of Thee I Sing by George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin, George S. Kaufman, and Morrie Ryskind, published by Samuel French (1963) Of Thee I Sing starring Cloris Leachman and Carroll O'Connor, directed by Roger Beatty, Dick Hall, and Dave Powers, CBS Television Network (1972) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SHOW BOAT COMPOSER: Jerome Kern LYRICIST: Oscar Hammerstein II BOOK: Oscar Hammerstein II SOURCE: Edna Ferber's novel Show Boat (1926) DIRECTOR: Zeke Colvan, Oscar Hammerstein II CHOREOGRAPHER: Sammy Lee PRINCIPLE CAST: Jules Bledsoe (Joe), Howard Marsh (Gaylord), Helen Morgan (Julie) OPENING DATE: Dec 27, 1927 CLOSING DATE: May 04, 1929 PERFORMANCES: 572 SYNOPSIS: Spanning fifty years, a show boat, The Cotton Blossom, goes up and down the Mississippi River, chronicling the lives of the boat's performers, owners, and stagehands. As American society changes, so do the ideologies of those on the Cotton Blossom. Show Boat departed from the standard fare of musical comedies, comic operetta, and vaudeville revues, definitively envisioning a style of musical theatre in which dances, song, and dialogue served a unified dramatic arch. The serious subject matter, dealing with racism and unrequited love, was also a departure from the frivolous subject matter on musical theatre stages, establishing a new genre of musical storytelling. Susan Stroman, the choreographer for the 1994 revival, delves into the impetus behind musicalizing Edna Ferber's novel, the collaboration between Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II, Florenz Ziegfeld's concern about the show's success, and the reaction to the story in the 21st Century. Susan Stroman is a five-time Tony Award-winning director and choreographer most known for Crazy For You, Contact, The Scottsboro Boys, and The Producers. Her work has been honored with Olivier, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, Lucille Lortel and a record six Astaire Awards. She directed and choreographed The Producers, winner of a record-making 12 Tony Awards including Best Direction and Best Choreography. SOURCES Block, Geoffrey Holden. “Show Boat: In the Beginning.” Enchanted Evenings: The Broadway Musical from Show Boat to Sondheim, Oxford University Press, 2004. Stempel, Larry. Showtime: A History of the Broadway Musical Theater, W.W. Norton, 2010. Culwell-Block, Logan. “5 Musicals That Got Major Revisions When They Returned to Broadway.” Playbill, 20 Apr. 2017. Davis, F. James. “Mixed Race America - Who Is Black? One Nation's Definition.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service. Decker, Todd. Show Boat: Performing Race in an American Musical, Oxford University Press, 2015. Decker, Todd. Who Should Sing ‘Ol Man River'? The Lives of an American Song by Todd Decker, Oxford University Press, 2014. Kantor, Michael, director. Broadway: The American Musical. PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, 12 Oct. 2004. Kruger, Miles. Show Boat: The Story of a Classic American Musical. New York: Oxford University Press, 1977. (Updated soft cover edition - New York: Da Capo, 1990)  Lunden, Jeff. “'Showboat'.” NPR, NPR, 17 Apr. 2000. Maslon, Laurence. American Musicals: The Complete Book and Lyrics of Eight Broadway Classics 1927-1949. Library of America, 2014. Rich, Frank. “A Musical Theater Breakthrough.” The New York Times, 21 Oct. 1984. Swardson, Anne. “Showdown Over 'Show Boat'.” The Washington Post, 17 May 1993. “Ziegfeld Follies | History Detectives.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service. Show Boat, Studio Cast Recording, EMI (1988) Show Boat starring Irene Dunn and Paul Robeson, directed by James Whale, Universal Pictures (1936) Show Boat starring Kathryn Grayson and Howard Keel, directed by George Sidney, MGM Studios (1951) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SHUFFLE ALONG COMPOSER: Eubie Blake LYRICIST: Noble Sissle BOOK: F.E. Miller, Aubrey Lyles DIRECTOR: Walter Brooks PRINCIPLE CAST: Lottie Gee (Bessie), Aubrey Lyles (Sam), F.E. Miller (Steve) OPENING DATE: May 23, 1921 CLOSING DATE: Jul 15, 1922 PERFORMANCES: 484 SYNOPSIS: Sam and Steve are business owners who decide that they will both run for the Mayor of Jimtown, USA. Whichever one wins will appoint the other their chief of police. Complications arise when the two men are so busy squabbling they do not realize that a new candidate is ready to take on their corrupt administration. Shuffle Along was significant as an early Broadway revue written by and starring Black vaudeville artists that became a smash hit with Depression-era audiences. Jerrell L. Henderson outlines the ways the show proved Black musicals, Black love stories, and Black-lead productions could be successful in the United States with strong emphasis placed on creators Eubie Blake, Noble Sissle, Flournoy Miller, and Aubrey Lyles, as well as the show's original performers including Josephine Baker, Adelaide Hall, Florence Mills, Fredi Washington, and Paul Robeson. An analysis of George C. Wolfe and Savion Glover's 2015 reexamination of the show, with cast members Audra McDonald and Billy Porter, is explored as well.  Jerrell L. Henderson is a Director and Puppeteer. Upcoming Puppet Short Films include, Hamlin: La Revue Sombre with Handmade Puppet Dreams and Diamond's Dream with Chicago Children's Theatre. He performed his signature puppetry piece, I Am The Bear, this fall with Chicago International Puppet Festival's Living Room Tours. His shadow play, 3 American Myths: A Riff in Shadow & Light in 3 Rhythmic Movements was a finalist for a 2019 Jim Henson Foundation Grant. Recent directing credits include Mlima's Tale with Griffin Theatre (Jeff Award Nomination for Direction and Best Play) and Thurgood with Walnut Street Theatre. Other credits include The River with BoHo Theatre, Untitled with Inis Nua (Barrymore Award nomination for Outstanding Direction of a Play) and Something Like A War: A New Musical with 11th Hour Theatre. As an assistant director, Jerrell has worked with The Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre, and Lookingglass Theatre. He received an MFA in Directing from Northwestern University, is a member of the Lincoln Center Directors Lab (2012), an Artistic Associate of Black Lives, Black Words, and a Henson Foundation sponsored participant at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center National Puppetry Conference (2020). SOURCES Carlin, Richard, and Ken Bloom. Eubie Blake: Rags, Rhythm, and Race. Oxford University Press, USA, 2020.  Gaines, Caseen. Footnotes: The Black Artists Who Rewrote the Rules of the Great White Way. Sourcebooks, 2021.   Kimball, Robert, and William Bolcom. Reminiscing with Noble Sissle and Eubie Blake. Cooper Square Pub, 1973.    Miller, Flournoy, et. al. Shuffle Along. CreateSpace, 2015.   Rose, Al. Eubie Blake. New York : Schirmer Books, 1979.    Woll, Allen. Black Musical Theatre. Da Capo Press, 1991. Shuffle Along, Studio Cast, New World Records (1976) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Merry Widow COMPOSER: Franz Lehar LIBRETTISTS: Viktorr Leon, Louis Stein SOURCE: L'Attache d'ambassade (1861) by playwright Henri Meilhac PRINCIPLE CAST: Mizzi Günther (Hanna), Siegmund Natzler (Baron Zeta), Louis Treumann (Danilo), Annie Wünsch (Valencienne) OPENING DATE: Dec 30, 1905 CLOSING DATE: Unknown PERFORMANCES: 483 SYNOPSIS: A prince from a small kingdom courts a wealthy widow to keep her money in the country. Both the cultural influences and the lasting artistic impacts of Franz Lehár's The Merry Widow are analyzed within the context of American musical theatre history. The comic operetta's success is attributed both to its timely approach to current public opinion and its artistic superiority when compared to contemporary populist entertainment. The Merry Widow's influence as a piece of art, a franchise, and a template for production are explored. In summation, Andrew Child looks at the ways The Merry Widow set the scene for the following decades of musical theatre on the world stage and notes the ways the libretto is revamped, revived, and reproduced for contemporary audiences today. Andrew Child is a multi-hyphenate artist whose work as a director, animator, choreographer, performer, and designer has been seen on stages and screens all over Boston, Argentina, and Italy. He has also worked as an arts writer with a focus on Boston's complete arts ecosystem and as a guest artist for institutions such as MIT, Emerson College, New England Conservatory, Clark University, and NYU. He has been quoted in the New York Times, Chicago Tribune, LA Times, and Boston Globe. He holds a degree in theatre arts from Brandeis University. SOURCES Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

HMS PINAFORE; OR, THE LASS WHO LOVED A SAILOR COMPOSER: Arthur Sullivan LYRICIST: W.S. Gilbert BOOK: W.S. Gilbert DIRECTOR: W.S. Gilbert CHOREOGRAPHER: John D'Auban PRINCIPLE CAST: Blanche Roosevelt (Josephine), J.H. Ryley (Sir Joseph), Hugh Talbert (Ralph Rackstraw) OPENING DATE: December 1st, 1879 CLOSING DATE: December 27th, 1879 PERFORMANCES: 28 SYNOPSIS: Josephine, the daughter of a British Naval Captain, has become the object of two men's desires: Ralph, a lowly Sailor, and Sir Joseph, the First Lord of Admiralty. Trapped between society's expectations and her own heart's desires, Josephine must make a decision on whom to marry. Rupert and Richard Holmes detail the unparalleled significance on musical theatre history by Gilbert and Sullivan's second major collaboration, H.M.S. Pinafore, which established the popularity of witty patter songs and laid a framework for love stories told through operetta. The simplicity of the narrative and clarity of the stock characters has made the show a success which has delighted audiences through the ages. Upon its American premiere, H.M.S. Pinafore was an immediate success, launching a new standard for musical entertainment which would redefine what musical theatre could accomplish. Gilbert and Sullivan's joint and individual oeuvres are detailed through an analysis of their longstanding global popularity. Richard Holmes- A fixture of the New York Gilbert and Sullivan Players for forty years, he recently performed H.M.S. Pinafore's Captain Corcoran for the 215th time, and has earned kudos in 31 principal roles in all 13 Savoy operas across the United States and England. He made his stage debut in the Metropolitan Opera Childrens' Chorus and his extraordinary half-century career at the Met was recently highlighted in the acclaimed film The Opera House. He has additionally played 160 major roles at such venues as Glimmerglass Opera, Chicago Opera Theater, Virginia Opera, countless others, and soloed at major festivals across Europe and Russia. Rupert Holmes- the first person in Broadway history to solely win Tony® awards as author, composer and lyricist of a musical—The Mystery of Edwin Drood—which also won the Tony® for Best Musical. Add identical Drama Desk awards plus their additional category of Best Orchestration. He received the Best Book Drama Desk award for Curtains and Tony® noms for Book and Add'l Lyrics. For Say Goodnight, Gracie he received a Tony® Best Play nom and won LORT's National Broadway Theatre award. Twice a recipient of MWA's “Edgar” Award, his novels are Where the Truth Lies, Swing and The McMaster's Guide to Homicide. TV: Creator-writer of AMC's Remember WENN. SOURCES HMS Pinafore by WS Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan, published by Dover Publications (2002) HMS Pinafore, The D'Oyle Carte Company & Isidore Godfrey, Decca Records (1959) Ayre, Leslie. The Gilbert & Sullivan Companion. London: Papermac, 1985. Gilbert and Sullivan: HMS Pinafore starring Frankie Howerd and Peter Marshall, directed by Rodney Greenberg. Acord Media (1982)   The Topsy Turvy World of Gilbert and Sullivan by Keith Dockray and Alan Sutton, published by Fonthell Media (2020) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

THE BLACK CROOK COMPOSER: Thomas Baker, George Bickwell, Giuseppe Operti LYRICIST: Theodore Kennick BOOK: Charles M Barras STAGED BY:: David Costa PRINCIPLE CAST: J.W. Blaisdell (Count), George Boniface (Rodolophe), Rose Morton (Amina) OPENING DATE: September 12th, 1866 CLOSING DATE: Unknown PERFORMANCES: 474 SYNOPSIS:  The duplicitous Count Wolfenstein has his eyes on the beautiful Amina but she is betrothed to Rodolphe. In order to have Amina all for himself, The Count has Hertzog, a black magic sorcerer who has achieved eternal life by bringing a fresh soul to the Devil every year, take Rodolphe as the annual sacrifice. When Stalacta, The Fairy Queen of the Golden Realm, meets Rodolphe she is determined to bring the young lovers back together and to defeat Wolfenstein and Hertzog. Though neither the first American fusion of storytelling and music nor a particular artistic triumph, Professor Sebastian Trainor examines The Black Crook's position as the first commercially successful piece of musical theatre to take New York by storm. A serendipitous fusion between an unproduced Faustian melodrama and a mechanical spectacle purchased in Europe lead to a crowd-pleasing sensation. Marketing which emphasized the cost of the imported spectacle and denouncements of the scantily clad dancers created a frenzied box office rush which made the show profitable in groundbreaking ways. The chapter examines the ways The Black Crook established a standard for spectacle on Broadway, absorbed the sex appeal which would become common in later productions, and set a business model for profitable musical theatre in America. Sebastian Trainor is an Assistant Professor of Theatre History at the Pennsylvania State University. As a scholar he investigates charismatic-but-suspicious theatre-historical anecdotes, with an eye toward re-narrating them in more truthful contexts. His essays have appeared in Text & Presentation, Theatre Symposium, The Journal of American Drama and Theatre, and various edited collections.  SOURCES: Allen, Robert C. Horrible Prettiness: Burlesque and American Culture. Chapel Hill, NC: The University of North Carolina Press, 1991. Barrass, Charles. The Black Crook. In Nineteenth Century Amaerican Plays. Edited by Myron Matlaw. New York: Applause, 1967. 324-374. Freedley, George. “The Black Crook and The White Fawn.” Dance Index: A New Magazine Devoted to Dancing4.1(1945): 4-16.  Lewis, Robert M. (editor). From Traveling Show to Vaudeville: Theatrical Spectacle in America, 1830-1910. Baltimore, MD: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2003.  Mates, Julian. “The Black Crook Myth.” Theatre Survey 17(1966): 31-43. Odell, George. Annals of the New York Stage. Vol. 8. New York: Columbia University Press, 1936. 152-156. Rogers, Bradley. “Redressing the Black Crook: The Dancing Tableau of Melodrama.” Modern Drama 55.4(2012): 476-496. Smith, Cecil. Musical Comedy in America. New York: Applause, 1950. Toll, Robert C. On with the Show: The First Century of Show Business in America. Oxford University Press. 1976. Twain, Mark. Mark Twain's Travels with Mr. Brown. Edited by Franklin Walker and G. Ezra Dane. Alfred A. Knopf. 1940. Whitton, Joseph. The Naked Truth! The Inside Story of the Black Crook. 1897. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hosts Robert W. Schneider & Andrew Child discuss the objective of the book and podcast for listeners and scholars. This episode focuses on the genesis of the book, how the titles were chosen, how its authors were chosen, and the future of this publication. Andrew Child is a multi-hyphenate artist whose work as a director, animator, choreographer, performer, and designer has been seen on stages and screens all over Boston, Argentina, and Italy. He has also worked as an arts writer with a focus on Boston's complete arts ecosystem and as a guest artist for institutions such as MIT, Emerson College, New England Conservatory, Clark University, and NYU. He has been quoted in the New York Times, Chicago Tribune, LA Times, and Boston Globe. He holds a degree in theatre arts from Brandeis University. Robert W. Schneider holds academic appointments at Penn State University, New York Film Academy, and Mount Union University, as well as serving as the Artistic Director for The J2 Spotlight Musical Theater Company and as an original programming producer at Feinstein's/54 Below in New York City. He is the host of the podcasts Behind The Curtain: Broadway's Living Legends, Gay Card Revoked, and This Was A Thing. For the past fifteen years Robert has been one of the most prolific leaders of online education in the arts. He is a proud member of SDC, AEA, and AGVA.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices