Broadway / Musical Theatre Books

[jczelyph]

Posted: 12/27/04 at 9:23pm

I'm looking to buy some books about Broadway or London's West End or musicals in general. What books do you recommend? I'm interested in all aspects of the field, not just history. I'm particularly interested in post-1960 theatre. What do you guys suggest?

Thanks!

[My Fair Lady]

Posted: 12/27/04 at 9:28pm

Making It On Broadway.

[jczelyph]

Posted: 12/27/04 at 9:39pm

I have that already and I love it! You're on the right track...any others?

[My Fair Lady]

Posted: 12/27/04 at 9:40pm

How about-At This Theater or 100 Greatest Musicals.

[jczelyph]

Posted: 12/27/04 at 9:43pm

I also have 100 Greatest! I've had a look at At This Theater and I've ordered it! Looks good!

[pab]

Posted: 12/27/04 at 9:44pm

Broadway: The American Musical
Link

[spiderdj82]

Posted: 12/27/04 at 9:45pm

have you tried the book that was the companion to the PBS series?

[spiderdj82]

Posted: 12/27/04 at 9:46pm

Pab, you and I have said a lot of the same thing tonight.

[J-Pill]

Posted: 12/27/04 at 10:07pm

It Happened On Broadway: An Oral History of the Great White Way
by Myrna Katz Frommer and Harvey Frommer

Goes up to about 1997. Updated On: 12/27/04 at 10:07 PM

[pab]

Posted: 12/27/04 at 10:10pm

Well spiderdj82, you know what they say:

Great minds think alike

[jczelyph]

Posted: 12/28/04 at 7:37pm

J-Pill - From which date(ish) does that book cover?

[JBSinger]

Posted: 12/28/04 at 7:39pm

Ethan Mordden (sp?) has a whole series broken down by decade that are wonderful. He just published "The Happiest Corpse I've Ever Seen" that covers the last 25 years. His 30's volume is next.
20's Make Believe
40's O What A Beautiful Mornin
50's Everything's Coming Up Roses
60's Open a new window
70's One More Kiss (this one was bit negative for my taste but still had some wonderful insights).

[jczelyph]

Posted: 12/30/04 at 8:28pm

Thanks. I have Mordden's books covering the last 25 years as well as the 60's and 70's editions. Anyone got any other ideas...? I'm particularly interested in books covering more modern musical theatre (e.g. 'The Happiest Corpse...' and 'Ever After') and books concerning structure and analysis of musical theatre rather than history...

Updated On: 12/30/04 at 08:28 PM

[VeuveClicquot]

Posted: 12/30/04 at 9:33pm

Ken Mandelbaum's "Not Since Carrie" is a great one, if you haven't read it.

"Making it Big" is an interesting account of the creation of the Broadway flop "Big", written by one of the producers of the show.

One of my favorites is "Broadway Babies Say Goodnight" by Mark Steyn. He's a British writer, so it's kind of London-centric, but he's got a lot of interesting things to say (and it covers the time period you're looking for).

"Sing Out, Louise" is also fun. It's individual stories from performers, writers, and directors, about specific experiences they've had working on shows. (There's a long piece about Karen Ziemba working on CRAZY FOR YOU, and a good one looking into Graciela and Stevens and Flaherty's working process for ONCE ON THIS ISLAND. There's also a great story about one of the understudies for NICK AND NORA.)

My favorite musical theatre book is "The Making of No, No, Nanette" by Don Davis. It's an incredibly bizarre story, and the book is a dishy delight. And while it's not specifically about musical theatre, Jimmy Kirkwood's book "Diary of a Mad Playwright: Or How I Went On the Road With Mary Martin and Carol Channing and Lived To Tell About It" is a scream. Updated On: 12/30/04 at 09:33 PM

[jczelyph]

Posted: 1/1/05 at 7:12pm

They're brill! Thanks! Any more recommendations, gang?

[CastAlbumFan]

Posted: 1/1/05 at 7:19pm

"Broadway Musicals: Show by Show" by Stanley Green

[paradox_error]

Posted: 1/2/05 at 12:00am

Musicals: A Grand Tour!

interesting book, although the author doesn't really seem to like anything that didn't include Michael Bennett somehow. He claims Sweeney Todd, Sunday in the Park With George and Into the Woods are destroyed by heavy-handed direction...

But apart from that it is a very informative and interesting read.

Posted: 1/2/05 at 1:55pm

"Not Since Carrie" is the funniest book ever written on theatre and in some ways the saddest, too. You read about these disastrous shows and think how awful it would have been to spend so much time, money and creative drive to put together a show that runs for a few days and then vanishes without a trace...

My all time favorite Theatre book has to be "The Season" by William Goldman. He tracks every show for one season on Broadway (I can't recall the year-- late 60's soemtime). It is a bit dated (the section on ticket agencies is a study in how not to run a business and thankfully they have vanished) and Goldman's chapter on "the Homosexuals" is brutally (and happily) outdated now.

Even though sometimes you are reading about practices that seem as distant as the Edwardian Era, sometimes you are struck that somethings never change. I'd recommend it highly to any scholar of theatre. It is still in print or should be in any decent library.

[VeuveClicquot]

Posted: 1/2/05 at 5:46pm

Paradox, I hated "Broadway! A Grand Tour!"

The author had very bizarre tastes, and tended to use sweeping generalizations to explain his unproveable theories. (Like his contention that ANNIE is responsible for the death of the Broadway musical.)

It's one thing to not like a show. It's another to write about a show dismissively, without explaining your reasoning.

[Caroline-Q-or-TBoo]

Posted: 1/2/05 at 5:50pm

i'm not sure the title but i know the subtitle is:
THe Last 25 Years of Broadway. it was published THIS year too!

[gettinhep]

Posted: 1/2/05 at 5:52pm

Ted Chapin's 'Everything Was Possible' is an excellent look at the birth of one specific show - Sondheim's 'Follies.'

[jczelyph]

Posted: 1/2/05 at 6:31pm

Superb response! Thanks! I've ordered a few of the books mentioned here! Very excited to get them in the post now. Thanks again, gang!

Caroline: The book you're referring to is 'The Happiest Corspe I've Ever Seen: The Last 25 Years of Broadway" and I have it already but thank's for the recommendation! It's quite interesting so I recommend it as a read...

Posted: 1/2/05 at 7:21pm

Caroline that "Last 25 years of Broadway" is yet another Ethan Mordden book. Instead of doing two more "Decade" books he combined the last 25 years into "The Happiest Corpse I've Ever Seen-- the last 25 years of Broadway." And it has some great lines but the unrelenting bitchiness kind of grated on me-- I guess hearing him rip apart a show I've actually seen & loved isn't as much fun as him shredding some flop from 40 years ago.

And he's so absolutely sure what is wrong with every show that ever ran on broadway, it makes me wonder why he hasn't put together the perfect show himself. Does anyone know? Does Ethan Mordden have any broadway experience?

[VeuveClicquot]

Posted: 1/2/05 at 7:26pm

Joekv, I think Mordden is the best musical theatre historian working today.

And for the most part, I think he's right on the money with HAPPIEST CORPSE. He spends a great deal of time defending shows that other people dismiss, and he provides persuasive arguments for all of his opinions.

I do agree that the last line of the book is bizarre and out of place, and his anger at HAIRSPRAY is odd and unexplained. But I think he is much fairer, better informed, and more intelligent than many who are writing books about the subject (especially the authors of "Ever After" and "Broadway! A Grand Tour!")

[magruder]

Posted: 1/2/05 at 7:32pm

Making It Big was actually written by Barbara Isenberg, a frequent LA Times contributor. It was meant to be a celebratory companion piece to Broadway's latest smash, but when the show got into trouble during its Detroit tryout, it became something else entirely. I agree that it is riveting reading.

I haven't read Broadway Babies Say Goodnight, but I've often heard and read that the author makes a number of homophobic statements in it. Can anyone clarify?