Groundbreaking Musicals

[Phantom of London]

Posted: 2/11/12 at 7:31pm

What are the groundbreaking musicals and why?

[ChessMad]

Posted: 2/11/12 at 7:58pm

Show Boat - The first musical about a serious subject. Alcohol, racism.

Of Thee I Sing - The first musical to win a pulitzer prize.

Oklahoma! - The first musical with dance that carried the story forwards.

Kiss Me, Kate - Based on a Shakespeare play. A play within a play.

West Side Story - One of the best choreographed musicals ever. Brought up social realistic problems in its own time.

Gypsy - Incredibly well written book.

Cabaret - Used experimental ways of telling the story. In my opinion the first "concept" musical.

Hair - The first rock musical.

Follies - The first musical to cynically portray the world of the musical. The first musical to use pastiche. Had no "real" plot.

42nd Street - The first successful musical based on a movie musical.

La Cage Aux Folles - The first successful musical that had a plot that involved a homosexual couple.


This is just my opinion. I think that My Fair Lady, Guys and Dolls, Company, and A Chorus Line should be on the list aswell.
(Sorry for any bad grammar, English is not my first language)

[Matt2]

Posted: 2/11/12 at 8:18pm

The Cradle Will Rock -- a musical that addressed such issues as greed, corruption and unionization using satire-- all during the middle of the Great Depression. Its first performance that almost didn't happen is one of the greatest moments in Broadway history.

Pal Joey -- for addressing adult sexuality in a frank manner, surprising for a musical in 1940. The title character is an antihero, which differed from the usual formula used in musicals.



Updated On: 2/11/12 at 08:18 PM

[Matt2]

Posted: 2/11/12 at 8:30pm

Also,

Falsettos: The musical is the first I know of that seriously addressed the issue of homosexuality and the effects it has on a family and also addressed the complications and complexity of human relationships. The musical also dealt with AIDS at a time when the subject was still considered taboo by many people.

[chewy5000]

Posted: 2/11/12 at 8:33pm

Billy Elliot

[undercoveractor]

Posted: 2/11/12 at 8:47pm

I think of LOVE LIFE (194 as the first concept musical. Kurt Weil & Alan Jay Lerner wrote the show, ELia Kazan directed , and Michael Kidd choreographed.
The characters do not age as the story progresses forward. Unfortunately no cast album was made, so few people remember this gem today....but Nannette Fabray did win a Tony for it!

[defyingravity11]

Posted: 2/11/12 at 10:50pm

My top 10:

The Black Crook – first book musical
Show Boat - first dramatic musical
Of Thee I Sing - the first musical to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama
Oklahoma! – first musical to integrate songs and dances
The Cradle Will Rock – more for the controversy surrounding it, exemplary of the FTP
West Side Story – first to call on an ensemble to act, sing, and dance
Hair – began Joe Papp’s trend of transfers
Follies - avant garde Broadway musical
A Chorus Line – initiated the workshop
The Scottsboro Boys – brought it all back to the beginning (minstrelsy)

Not really a musical but, Uncle Tom’s Cabin

[Gothampc]

Posted: 2/12/12 at 12:06am

Jesus Christ Superstar - popularized the concept of rock opera; (was it also the first sung through musical that brought popularity to later shows like Evita, Cats, Phantom, Les Miz, etc?)

[broadwaydevil]

Posted: 2/12/12 at 12:11am

The Phantom of the Opera. There may be very little in the substance of the show itself and it's far from my favorite but its sheer recognition among anyone who's ever been to New York or has ever even hear of Broadway makes it groundbreaking.

[My Oh My]

Posted: 2/12/12 at 12:27am

Les Miserables 2009-present. Cos' Cammack says so.

[peerrjb]

Posted: 2/12/12 at 12:41am

I love LOVE LIFE, too. Some wonderful songs. Some folks also feel R&H2's "Allegro" was attempting that "concept musical" sense, too.

"Ground" was also broken in Joshua Logan's original staging of "South Pacific" -- the scenes were "swept" in and out in a constantly-moving style which is now commonplace. Mielziner's scenic design incorporated that choice as well as really gorgeous painted almost watercolor-style drops which changed when lit from behind. It was a long while till Sean Kenny's amazing "Oliver!" turntable knocked out audiences and critics and award-givers. Then "Hello, Dolly!" had TWO.

"Cabaret" took a story and connected its subtext to the darkness through the "cabaret numbers" commenting on what was happening in the "book" material. Scary and brilliant and unheard of in quite the same manner at that point in time.

"Company" did the same sort of thing, and I've always loved the comment (which I recall more than who said it) as being "The world's first CUBIST musical".

And long before "Kiss Me, Kate" came "The Boys from Syracuse", which served to remind audiences that Mister Shakespeare was just plain FUNNY.

And while "Lady in the Dark" attempted to use the idea of SCRIPT-before-songs (and used the musical sequences in Liza's mind much as "Follies" whirls into "Loveland") the sensational script for "1776" successfully kept audiences in the moment of the action for long stretches between songs.

Sad to think that so many contemporary creators are trying to use fancy shovels these days, but not really digging very deep!!!

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 2/12/12 at 12:45am

ChessMad that's a good list, although I'd question Kiss Me Kate. I love the show, but there had been musicals based on SHakespeare before (Boys of Syracuse) and I'm pretty sure ones with shows within a show, though perhaps not to that extent. I'd add to your description of West Side Story the fact that it also was arguably the first piece where choreography was truly as important an element as any of the other elements in the show, perhaps more so (sure Oklahoma and all had groundbreaking use of ballets, but they could be removed and while the show might be less psychologically complex, it would still read to an audience fine--same is true of Balanchine's SLaughter ballet in On Your Toes).

[ClapYo'Hands]

Posted: 2/12/12 at 3:35am

Pacific Overtures - isn't it obvious why!?

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 2/12/12 at 9:16pm

This is a great thread and fascinating discussion, but I must take issue with some of these "claims."

For starters, a show that breaks new ground uses story-telling and musical staging techniques in fresh new ways...hence breaking new ground. Many of the shows on these lists are important landmarks in the chronology of the Broadway musical, but most successful shows offer at least one or two innovative moments. Most however are refinements of techniques that had been tried before, sometimes successfully and sometimes not.

The Black Crook – first book musical
In reality the first "book musicals" were operas and operettas. Bizet's CARMEN could be credited as an early example of a book musical where the songs advanced the action and illuminated character. The French operettas of Offenbach and the comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan are all early examples of book musicals.


Show Boat - first dramatic musical - Really? Weren't THE DESERT SONG, ROSE MARIE and THE STUDENT PRINCE "dramatic musicals" as well? All 3 pre-date SHOW BOAT.

Of Thee I Sing - the first musical to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama - And how did that break new ground? I would (and I do below) that OF THEE I SING was an early example of a fully integrated music. Listen to the cast album (1952 revival) and you can follow the story through just the songs, and hear how seamlessly the spoken word dovetails with the lyrics.

Oklahoma! – first musical to integrate songs and dances

Not at all! This factoid has been repeated so often if has become accepted as gospel truth. In addition to the shows named above many musicals of the 1930s integrated songs and dances. (If OF THEE I SING isn't an example of an integrated musical, I don't know what is.) What Rodgers, Hammerstein, and Moumoulian did was create a more seamless integration of the elements, but the groundwork had been laid in earlier shows by all three. It also acheived such phenomenal success (the first musical play to run more than 1,000 performances.) that it lead others to try the same techniques. THAT is how it broke ground. ALLEGRO is probably the most ground-breaking R&H show of all but its lack of success hindered its impact. Yes, SOUTH PACIFIC utilized the fluid staging techniques that ALLEGRO tried, and later shows like FOLLIES, and GRAND HOTEL were natural extensions of ALLEGRO's attempts at theatrical ground-breaking.


The Cradle Will Rock – more for the controversy surrounding it, exemplary of the FTP

How did the controversy surrounding the creation of this show make it a landmark. The event of its first performance is now a theatrical legend, but the show hardly broke new ground.

West Side Story – first to call on an ensemble to act, sing, and dance
The original casts of ON YOUR TOES, and ON THE TOWN would beg to differ.

Hair – began Joe Papp’s trend of transfers
Fine, but how is that breaking new ground for musical theatre? Starting a show off-Broadway just proved to be a cheaper alternative to an out-of-town try-out. HAIR became famous for its topical subject matter, frankness and aggression. You could also credit it as the first successful musical to use rock (or rock elements) in its score. But the claim that it is a ground-breaker just because it was the first of Papp's transfers from off-Broadway is questionable.

Follies - avant garde Broadway musical
What do you mean by this? The style of the show, the juxtaposition of past and present? Someone else mentioned it was the first use of pastiche in a Broadway musical. Not at all. Many Broadway shows of the 40s/50s used musical styles of older eras. Check out the opening number of 1958's GOLDILOCKS, "Lazy Moon" - a pastiche of musical comedy songs from the early part of the century. Even Sondheim admits that many of the songs for Angela Lansbury's mayoress in ANYONE CAN WHISTLE were written as pastiches of Kay Thompson. And doesn't he use pastiche for "You Could Drive a Person Crazy" in COMPANY? He does use more of it in FOLLIES but it is not the first show in which he 9or anyone) uses the technique. I would suggest COMPANY broke more new ground than FOLLIES.


A Chorus Line – initiated the workshop Well, yes that is true but only as a cheaper and sometimes more effective replacement for out-of-town try-outs.


The Scottsboro Boys – brought it all back to the beginning (minstrelsy)

Huh??? You started with THE BLACK CROOK that is not a minstrel show. SCOTTSBORO BOYS did not break any new ground theatrically. It was just an effective format for telling that particular story.

And Eric, you cannot take "Slaughter on 10th Avenue" out of ON YOUR TOES because the end of the ballet resolves the attempted murder plot of the show. Take out the ballet and the show has no ending.

[SNAFU]

Posted: 2/12/12 at 9:22pm

I think HAIR broke ground by bringing a Rock sensibility to Broadway. It is the grandfather of Rent, Spring Awakening, American Idiot and Next to Normal.

[ChenoKahn]

Posted: 2/12/12 at 9:47pm

What would be your list frontrow?

[Jon]

Posted: 2/12/12 at 10:45pm

I wish I had the internet to write my term papers for me back when I was in college.

[peerrjb]

Posted: 2/13/12 at 4:02am

ClapYo'Hands.... I gotta say that "Pacific Overtures" is still one of my favorite evenings in the theatre. Saw the original production, and it truly was ONE OF A KIND. The orchestrations alone were a sublime achievement. Soon Tek Oh (spelling?) was brilliant and Mako's work in the now-lost-on-the-cutting-stage-floor second act performance was equally terrific. (Of course I was particularly, retrospectively, reactionary that season, since A CHORUS LINE -- which never did much for me -- was getting all the press, and CHICAGO also got shuffled-off-to-Buffalo.)

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 2/13/12 at 9:38am

Show Boat - epic American storytelling, thought-provoking and heartwrenching in its treatment of race, weaving drama popular show biz theatricality (both as spectacle and in the life/work of its show people characters) together

Threepenny Opera - poetics of politics, jazz and sexual candor, Brechtian technique (I'll leave it for those who understand it clearer than I to explain it)

Pal Joey - anti hero and sophistication

Oklahoma - songs and ballet woven into story (not sure if it was the first but it's seen as such)

Carousel - the anti-hero brought into tragedy; blended with romance and fantasy; sheer brilliance; the Soliloquy revealed as American art song and a protagonist's soul searching

Porgy - blending of opera and musical forms

The Cradle Will Rock - fighting the powers that be American style

Forum - for the opening number as anthem setting the show's tone

catch all: My Fair Lady, Fiddler on the Roof, Sweeney, Guys and Dolls, Anything Goes, She Loves Me, Pacific Overtures - for varying reasons raising the art; sheer perfection of score and story

Gypsy and A Chorus Line - for holding a mirror up to show business and taking no prisoners, for the power of their librettos, and in Gypsy's case, for the iconic heroin who is a bit mad or madcap which will become a staple of musical theater aspiration (from Dolly to Sally to Little Edie to Diana)

West Side Story - I presume the fusion of contemporary American urban life and classic tragedy was, to those sensitive to it, overwhelming at the time... I'm sure I will be corrected if I'm wrong

Hair - non-plot and youth centered exuberance, and, more importantly, as a voice of protest and the spirituality that crossed over

1776 - the literateness and pervasiveness of a book in a musical is unequaled and may not have ever set a trend, but the fact that it could be done and achieved such harmony and integrity in the musical form broke new ground

Dreamgirls - I Am Telling You is the American musical's answer to a true operatic aria

Company (Follies, Pacific Overtures, Sunday, etc.) - the concept musical, Sondheim in all his psychological force and honesty

Falsettos - the integration of gay characters into bourgeois boy and girl next door (in certain neighborhoods) life

Tommy - rock opera raised to the level of art

Into the Woods - challenging the audience to embrace the imperfection of humanity/community and difficult choices a society needs to make in the most unlikely guise


Next to NormaL - a case could be made for the fusion of comedy, and intimate rock opera, and a woman truly on the verge, as some critic said - Brantley? - not a feel good musical, a feel everything musical. If any show can at this stage validly revive an interest in the form, this is it.





Updated On: 2/13/12 at 09:38 AM

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 2/13/12 at 9:38am

Show Boat - epic American storytelling, thought-provoking and heartwrenching in its treatment of race, weaving drama popular show biz theatricality (both as spectacle and in the life/work of its show people characters) together

Threepenny Opera - poetics of politics, jazz and sexual candor, Brechtian technique (I'll leave it for those who understand it clearer than I to explain it)

Pal Joey - anti hero and sophistication

Oklahoma - songs and ballet woven into story (not sure if it was the first but it's seen as such)

Carousel - the anti-hero brought into tragedy; blended with romance and fantasy; sheer brilliance; the Soliloquy revealed as American art song and a protagonist's soul searching

Porgy - blending of opera and musical forms

The Cradle Will Rock - fighting the powers that be American style

Forum - for the opening number as anthem setting the show's tone

catch all: My Fair Lady, Fiddler on the Roof, Sweeney, Guys and Dolls, Anything Goes, She Loves Me, Pacific Overtures, and a few select others - for varying reasons raising the art; sheer perfection of score and story

Gypsy and A Chorus Line - for holding a mirror up to show business and taking no prisoners, for the power of their librettos, and in Gypsy's case, for the iconic heroin who is a bit mad or madcap which will become a staple of musical theater aspiration (from Dolly to Sally to Little Edie to Diana)

West Side Story - I presume the fusion of contemporary American urban life and classic tragedy was, to those sensitive to it, overwhelming at the time... I'm sure I will be corrected if I'm wrong

Hair - non-plot and youth centered exuberance, and, more importantly, as a voice of protest and the spirituality that crossed over

1776 - the literateness and pervasiveness of a book in a musical is unequaled and may not have ever set a trend, but the fact that it could be done and achieved such harmony and integrity in the musical form broke new ground

Dreamgirls - I Am Telling You is the American musical's answer to a true operatic aria

Company (Follies, Pacific Overtures, Sunday, etc.) - the concept musical, Sondheim in all his psychological force and honesty

Falsettos - the integration of gay characters into bourgeois boy and girl next door (in certain neighborhoods) life

Tommy - rock opera raised to the level of art

Into the Woods - challenging the audience to embrace the imperfection of humanity/community and difficult choices a society needs to make in the most unlikely guise


Next to Normal - a case could be made for the fusion of comedy, and intimate rock opera, and a woman truly on the verge, as some critic said - Brantley? - not a feel good musical, a feel everything musical. If any show can at this stage validly revive an interest in the form, this is it.





Updated On: 2/13/12 at 09:38 AM

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 2/13/12 at 9:42am

Short and boring, I am hardly worth ignoring, who cares if I'm all damned, AND I'M REPETITITVE

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 2/13/12 at 2:06pm

While Hair represents the more modern definition of "rock", it was groundbreaking in its structure, content, and politics. I believe the musical credited to bringing "rock" to Broadway is actually Bye Bye Birdie, but it represented the early days of "rock and roll" with a smattering of contemporary sound in a classic book musical comedy. Hair was notable in being revolutionary and finding popularity in what was considered counter-culture to Broadway musical theatre and its audience.

[Gaveston2]

Posted: 2/13/12 at 3:35pm

frontrowcentre, I agree with some of your objections.

HOWEVER,

1. Although it may treat its central romance seriously, there is nothing in THE STUDENT PRINCE that compares to SHOW BOAT's treatment of miscegenation, a political and social issue that was still a hot-button topic when the show premiered (with an interracial cast, BTW, which some have claimed was also a first). I don't think you can call other early 20th century operettas "serious" in the same way as SHOW BOAT.

2. While OF THEE I SING is certainly important, its score (with lovely pop tunes such as the title song and "Love is Sweeping the Country") aren't really integrated in the same way as OKLAHOMA!'s numbers. OF THEE I SING has many songs that work in or out of the show; OKLAHOMA!'s numbers became even bigger hits, but only because everyone knew the story of the show and knew why somebody was singing about a surrey with fringe on top.

You are right that OKLAHOMA! wasn't a sudden invention, but a culmination of Hammerstein's experiments beginning with SHOW BOAT. But given the way OKLAHOMA! changed nearly every show that came after, I don't think you can fairly dismiss it as a mere "factoid". Even the musical comedies of the 40s (such as KISS ME, KATE and ANNIE, GET YOUR GUN) are suddenly paying lip service to the idea of integrating song and dance into the plot.

Updated On: 2/13/12 at 03:35 PM