Question about "Oklahoma!"

[sroderick2]

Posted: 8/20/08 at 2:53am

Hi there-

I just finished watching "Oklahoma!" with Hugh Jackman on DVD, and was surprised to find that the whole thing is about 3 hours long. I did a bit of research about dates (1943) and why it was a huge deal for the time, but wouldn't 3 hours be a long show for 1943? "My Fair Lady" also approaches the 3-hour mark, though it came later. Success aside, was it weird for a Broadway musical to be 3 hours long in the 40s/50s?

[Ed_Mottershead]

Posted: 8/20/08 at 10:16am

Not at all. In fact, most shows did run 2.5 to 3 hours, both musicals and non-musicals. I think part of the reason is the advent of television, which reached (and reaches) a much vaster demographic. People became conditioned to shorter entertainments, both serious and otherwise, with a resulting decrease in their attention spans. Also take into consideration that it took a lot longer to change a set before more sophisticated technology became prevalent. Except for a rare instance like August: Osage County, most plays try to get their curtains down by 2.5 hours, at a maximum.

[Jon]

Posted: 8/20/08 at 12:45pm

That's why the big musical number near the end of most old musicals (such as the title song of "Oklahoma")is refered to as the "11 O'clock number". Shows used to start at 8:30 and end around 11:30.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 8/20/08 at 1:00pm

People were used to longer theater then. Look at some of the non-musicals of the time, they were three acts, which meant two intermissions.

[philcrosby]

Posted: 8/20/08 at 1:24pm

I think people are confused about this too because films at the time were far shorter, so they assume theater was too. What they forget is that while a feature film would be 90-105 minutes. it would be preceded by a newsreel, a cartoon and a short subject, plus sometimes live entertainment ... making for a very full evening.
Updated On: 8/20/08 at 01:24 PM

[Weez]

Posted: 8/20/08 at 1:36pm

Hell, in Elizabethan times, going to the theatre was an ENTIRE AFTERNOON. Intervals between every act, often five acts, and those plays aren't that short *before* intervals. 'Oklahoma!' is pretty conservative lengthwise in comparison.

I did get some giggles out of the implication that attention spans are a more recent invention. :3

[Gothampc]

Posted: 8/20/08 at 1:40pm

In Greek times, going to the theater was a full day event. Ever had to sit through The Oresteia? (And the fourth play in The Oresteia hasn't survived).

[gypsy4]

Posted: 8/20/08 at 6:36pm

It was very common show these days have gotten shorter.

[SirNotAppearing]

Posted: 8/20/08 at 6:47pm

Jon, I think it was called that because it was right before the end of the show. You know the term "the eleventh hour"?

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=eleventh+hour