Tag Archives: Rodgers & Hart

History of Musicals: Broadway Goes Bust

Broadway’s Roaring Twenties came to a roaring close with the rise of Hollywood’s “talkies” and the fall of the stock market. The subsequent exodus of talent posed a serious challenge for stage musicals. In 1929, Irving Berlin and Jerome Kern … Continue reading

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History of Musicals: Hollywood Beckons

Short sound films were a popular novelty in nickelodeons at the turn of the 20th century. One of the most successful systems was Cameraphone, created in 1907 by James A. Whitman. In the fourth floor studios above Daly’s Theatre, not … Continue reading

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History of Musicals: First Golden Age

It’s been noted that the form of modern musical theater came from operetta, but its soul came from the music hall. This union of body and soul took place during the first two decades of the 20th century, beginning with … Continue reading

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Essential Film Musicals: 42nd Street

In 1927, Warner Brothers launched the era of talkies with The Jazz Singer, and studios scrambled to hire Broadway composers. Within a handful of years, screens were flooded with movie musicals, most of them hastily put through production, and audiences … Continue reading

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Essential Musicals: Oklahoma!

I called Show Boat the most influential American musical, but historian Thomas Hischak argues, “Not only is Oklahoma! the most important of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals, it is also the single most influential work in the American musical theater.” … Continue reading

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