History of American Musical Theatre

Hey guys-- I'm writing a paper for my US History class on American musical theatre. I'm not really sure exactly what my thesis is going to be, but I was thinking about the reflections of society appearing in musicals over the decades. It could go off in any direction though. I was wondering if any of you could provide me with any advice or suggestions for good websites, books, articles, etc...maybe your own knowledge. Thanks for your help!

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It's a high school paper. Alright thanks for the advice!

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Totally agree with Broadway: The American Musical. It also has a companion book, if you can pick it up.

I actually took a History of American Musical Theatre class last semester in college, and our textbook was Our Musicals, Ourselves: A Social History of the American Musical Theatre by John Bush Jones. I LOVE this book. He basically takes each decade of America 20th century and writes about what was happening in that decade and how that translated to the stage in musicals. Which sounds like exactly what you want. There's World Wars I and II, Depression, Roaring Twenties, Cold War, Black and Jewish musicals, Issue musicals in the civil rights era, etc. I highly recommend it.

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