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The 16 Greatest American Musicals in the Golden Age, according to the Library of America

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#1

The 16 Greatest American Musicals in the Golden Age, according to the Library of America

Posted: 11/2/14 at 7:11pm

The 16 Greatest American Musicals in the Golden Age, according to the Library of America

The list is not in order of greatness, but in chronological order, beginning with Showboat in 1927 and ending with "1776" in 1969. (Pictured is the last volume of the boxed set.)
As editor Laurence Maslon explains, his selection is based on how well the book and lyrics *read* not in how great they've been on stage.

Is it legitimate to judge them in this way (page, not stage)? Any outrageous inclusions or omissions?

The 16 Greatest American Musicals in the Golden Age, according to the Library of America

#2

The 16 Greatest American Musicals in the Golden Age, according to the Library of America

Posted: 11/2/14 at 7:31pm

Funny, I am just reading through this book now. I think that i you are going to publish musicals in print format it is fair to judge them based on how well they read, just as when you publish musicals in cast album format it is fair to judge them based on their score. I do question putting in a revue and leaving out such shows as West Side Story, Hello, Dolly!, The King and I, and every single non integrated musical comedy.
#4

The 16 Greatest American Musicals in the Golden Age, according to the Library of America

Posted: 11/2/14 at 8:35pm

Lawrence Maslon talks about the selection process in this article at Slate.com. As far as West Side Story, it is explained that one of the reasons it isn't in the set is that its late author refused for it to be included if the set also included Pal Joey.

Lawrence Maslon at Slate.com
Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end: then stop.
#6

The 16 Greatest American Musicals in the Golden Age, according to the Library of America

Posted: 11/2/14 at 8:56pm

I think that Carousel should replace Oklahoma. While Oklahoma is a nice musical, it is nothing more than fluff. "Oh the farmer and the cowman should be friends" Poor Laury, people will think her in love. And as is pointed out, these are chosen by how they read, so that cuts out Oklahoma's dream ballet.

However, Carousel deals with spousal abuse, absentee fathers, the amount of good a person does in their life, judgment, facing adversity

Carousel is the stronger piece on paper.
If anyone ever tells you that you put too much Parmesan cheese on your pasta, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
#8

The 16 Greatest American Musicals in the Golden Age, according to the Library of America

Posted: 11/2/14 at 9:17pm

I have Stanley Richards' book "Great Musicals of the American Theatre Volume One (originally published as Ten Great Musicals of the American Theatre) which has Of Thee I Sing; Porgy and Bess; One Touch of Venus; Brigadoon; Kiss Me, Kate; West Side Story; Fiddler on the Roof; Gypsy; 1776; and Company. It's from 1973.
#10

The 16 Greatest American Musicals in the Golden Age, according to the Library of America

Posted: 11/2/14 at 9:31pm

"I think that Carousel should replace Oklahoma. While Oklahoma is a nice musical, it is nothing more than fluff."

You either haven't seen OKLAHOMA! or you didn't think about it. It is basically the same story and themes as 1776, but manages to do them in a fun, non-literal way.

CAROUSEL "deals" with domestic abuse? Yeah, it says if you love someone then a slap feels like a kiss. That's some serious "dealing" there.
#12

The 16 Greatest American Musicals in the Golden Age, according to the Library of America

Posted: 11/2/14 at 9:36pm

I have seen and read Oklahoma. It does not equate to 1776.

And while your point about Carousel's "slap" is worthy of debate, the fact that people are debating it shows how much weight the musical has. It was an issue that wasn't discussed in musicals in those days.
If anyone ever tells you that you put too much Parmesan cheese on your pasta, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
#13

The 16 Greatest American Musicals in the Golden Age, according to the Library of America

Posted: 11/2/14 at 9:39pm

"FINIAN'S RAINBOW (WTF?"

I do agree with you in that Finian's Rainbow doesn't belong on the list because it has a book that is less than stellar. It's simply on the list because it deals with racial issues. I can think of no other reason for including it.
If anyone ever tells you that you put too much Parmesan cheese on your pasta, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
#15

The 16 Greatest American Musicals in the Golden Age, according to the Library of America

Posted: 11/2/14 at 10:07pm

The thing about 1776 is that it's highly fictionalized. I guess in judging a work they don't take into consideration how they took real events and twisted them into something that didn't happen.

I also find that 1776 really bogs down in the middle. For example, Momma Look Sharp, while an interesting song, doesn't move the story along any. Same with He Plays The Violin. Maybe they are there to humanize these characters, but they bog the show down.
If anyone ever tells you that you put too much Parmesan cheese on your pasta, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
#18

The 16 Greatest American Musicals in the Golden Age, according to the Library of America

Posted: 11/2/14 at 10:40pm

I think that Carousel should replace Oklahoma. While Oklahoma is a nice musical, it is nothing more than fluff. "Oh the farmer and the cowman should be friends"

And Carousel has "This Was a Real Nice Clambake" and "June is Bustin' Out All Over". Oklahoma carries its dark weight in the character of Jud. While Carousel has a couple of songs that are some of R&H's greatest, I've always found Oklahoma to be the stronger of the two shows. Not to mention the monumental influence Oklahoma had on the direction of musical theatre as an art form.

And while your point about Carousel's "slap" is worthy of debate, the fact that people are debating it shows how much weight the musical has.

At best, it's a lightweight debate about the material being dated. A Similar debate could ensue over the flop show, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, but that doesn't prove how much weight the musical has, either.
"What can you expect from a bunch of seitan worshippers?" - Reginald Tresilian
#19

The 16 Greatest American Musicals in the Golden Age, according to the Library of America

Posted: 11/2/14 at 11:21pm

While I agree that Carousel is the greatest of Rodgers and Hammerstein's work, I think both should be included because Oklahoma is such an important work in the history of musical theatre and is a great show as well. I would replace Finian's Rainbow with Carousel and maybe 1776 and Forum could be replaced by West Side Story and The King and I (sorry Dolly, but I think it would have to be left out), but other than that it is a great collection of librettos.
#21

The 16 Greatest American Musicals in the Golden Age, according to the Library of America

Posted: 11/3/14 at 3:19am

""But, lest readers think that I am peculiarly perverse in my tastes, I will own that one acclaimed musical theater writer refused to allow his show in the Library of America anthology if Pal Joey were also included. Discretion forbids me to name names, but he is no longer with us and he wrote the book for West Side Story."

So obviously that Arthur Laurents... Could that be another reason that WSS wasn't included? But I'm confused. Gypsy was included. And I can't think off the top of my head of another Arthur Laurents musical from that era that would be included.

Am I blanking on something?
#22

The 16 Greatest American Musicals in the Golden Age, according to the Library of America

Posted: 11/3/14 at 5:45am

No Eric you're not "blanking" on anything. It's curious to me that Laurents allowed GYPSY but not WEST SIDE STORY. If Laurents' issues with PAL JOEY are to be believed then he would have refused both from being included.

So the reason given for WEST SIDE STORY's exclusion doesn't make any sense to me.

I can't think of another Laurents musical from that era that would be included. Certainly not ANYONE CAN WHISTLE or HALLELUJAH, BABY!

Updated On: 11/3/14 at 05:45 AM

#23

The 16 Greatest American Musicals in the Golden Age, according to the Library of America

Posted: 11/3/14 at 11:33am

Or Do I Hear a Waltz. Would Laurents and/or his estate have more control over who gets to publish WSS than Gypsy? (which seems kinda odd since Gypsy feels more like a "book show" to me...) Or maybe he has no legal rights and the comment didn't matter anyway because they chose not to include WSS? Still--to throw in a comment like that and not explain it is...annoying (at least to a theatre geek like myself.)
#24

The 16 Greatest American Musicals in the Golden Age, according to the Library of America

Posted: 11/3/14 at 11:50am

With the exception of As Thousands Cheer, all of these musicals have been made into movies.

And with the exception of As Thousands Cheer, all of these musicals have had Broadway revivals. (As Thousands Cheer did have an off-Broadway revival.)
If anyone ever tells you that you put too much Parmesan cheese on your pasta, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.

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