English
596 Studies in Literature
& the
Other Arts
THE GREAT AMERICAN “BOOK” MUSICAL
The
“book” musical, which evolved out of
vaudeville, is a uniquely American genre.
With roots in minstrel songs,
the cakewalk, ragtime, marches, Irish
ballads, patriotic anthems, blues, torch songs, and jazz (and, in its
most
recent incarnations, rock, R&B, salsa, hip-hop, and rap),
as well the European operetta, the musical
tells a story with a combination of dialogue, song, and dance. In
this course, we’ll look at (and listen to)
American musicals from the 1927 groundbreaking “Show
Boat”
through the “golden
age” of the American Musical, in the mid-twentieth century
(“South Pacific,”
“West Side Story”), to “Rent,”
“Spring Awakening,” and “In the
Heights” (and
possibly beyond). We'll watch recordings of stage performances
(e.g.,
“Candide”),
as well as movie versions of stage musicals (e.g.,
“Oklahoma!”), read numerous libretti, read and/or watch the
source
material
for some of the musicals we study (e.g., Ferenc Molnár’s
1909 stage play “Liliom,” on
which Rodgers and Hammerstein based 1945’s
“Carousel”), and listen to many theatrical
cast recordings. (The complete list of texts TBA.)
Students will be responsible for presentations, short papers, experiments & explorations (both written and performed), and a major final paper.
Students will be responsible for presentations, short papers, experiments & explorations (both written and performed), and a major final paper.
Mondays and Wednesdays, 11:30-1:18, DE 238