Characteristics of a Book Musical

1
Characteristicsof a Book Musical

• Taken from Tom Jones Making Musicals

2
Primary Source Material

• The Variety Show
• Vaudeville, Burlesque, Revue
• Operetta
• The Variety Show and the Minstrel Show
• black face and Jim Crowe
• Christy Minstrels
• Pull Together or The Bill

3
Vaudeville, Burlesque, Revue

• Tony Pastor opened the first vaudeville house
• Burlesque mixed spectacle, comedy and beautiful
  women.
  
• Revues variety acts centered around a theme.
• Flo Ziegfeld most famous

4
Operetta

• Similar to comic opera
• Came from Europe
• Jacques Offenbach, Vienna
• Gilbert and Sullivan, England
• Victor Herbert and Sigmund Romburg

5
Characteristics of Book Musical

• Book is primary
• Elements integrated
• A sense of movement, change
• Lots of singing, dancing
• Singable songs
• Positive message
• Characters interesting, not complex
• Entertains through variety and humor

6
Other Musical Forms

• Dance Musicals
• Jerome Robbins
• Gower Champion
• Bob Fosse
• Michael Bennett
• West Side Story, A Chorus Line, Will Rogers
  Follies, Crazy for You

7
Other Musical Forms

• Concept Musical
• Harold Prince/Stephen Sondheim collaborations
• Cats, A Chorus Line, Contact
• Sung-Through Musical
• Andrew Lloyd Webber
• Les Miserables, Phantom of the Opera, Cats