by Laurence Maslon
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| Sheet music covers for "Give My Regards to Broadway" and the "Keep Moving Cake Walk." |
No one person created the musical. It evolved over time and incorporates a variety of influences and elements.
First of all, of course, there is the music. Minstrel songs and the cakewalk; Irish ballads and patriotic jingles; ragtime marches and stirring blues; poignant torch songs and jazz ditties; totemic anthems and rock opera -- the musical has captured every idiom of American expression. There is definitely a "Broadway" sound, often referred to as "Tin Pan Alley," a musical structure pioneered by songwriters like Irving Berlin and Richard Rodgers. However, this is by no means the only kind of music to appear on Broadway.
Then, there are the lyrics, the words that go with the music. They can be rhapsodic, witty, risqué, or patriotic. Broadway lyrics have become another form of native poetry -- words, catchphrases, sentiments, and stanzas that have entered the American lexicon. The lyrics of Cole Porter, Ira Gershwin, and Irving Berlin -- to name but three -- are routinely quoted in poetry anthologies around the world.
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| A score by Cole Porter, and lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II with composer Richard Rodgers. |
In the early days of the musical, what mattered most were the songs, and it was essential that they were catchy enough to amuse the audience or provide material for dancers or comedians. But, beginning in the 1930s, the situation, the book or libretto, of the musical started to achieve primary importance. A story or narrative became more frequently the spine of the musical, and in the 1940s, mostly due to the narrative sophistication of the shows of Rodgers and Hammerstein, the songs followed the plot and the characters, rather than the other way around. This narrative spine has made the musical quite influential as a cultural and artistic force; from the epic Kern-Hammerstein "Show Boat" and its view of race relations (1927) to "Oklahoma!" (1943) through "West Side Story" (1957), "Hair" and its antiwar sentiments (1967), "Company" (1970), and "Rent" (1996), the themes of prominent Broadway musicals reflected the controversial, revolutionary, and nostalgic issues of an evolving American culture.
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| George Balanchine leaning against a ballet bar during rehearsal. |
As the musical got more complex, it required a director to shape the production and its design and concept. Strong musical directors like George S. Kaufman and George Abbott emerged in the '30s; currently major artists like Harold Prince, Jerry Zaks, and Julie Taymor are key to shaping a musical's success. Choreographers were next to emerge as major artists; in the teens and '20s, they were simply "dance directors," but influential choreographers like George Balanchine and Agnes de Mille brought visionary ideas to the stage. With gifted choreographers like Jerome Robbins and Bob Fosse broadening their range in the '50s, it was only matter of time before they took on the job of director in addition to their dance duties. The director/choreographer became a major visionary force on the stage, guiding every visual and physical moment of a musical. Robbins and Fosse were joined by such talents as Gower Champion, Michael Bennett, and Tommy Tune.
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photo credits: Photofest; Historic American Sheet Music, "Keep Moving Cake Walk," Music B-791, Duke University Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library; Cole Porter Trust; and the Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization
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More about how minstrelsy influenced the musical from writer Mel Watkins and historian Ann Douglas, and an explanation of the cakewalk. Critic John Lahr discusses the cultural mythology of the Broadway musical.
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