American Music Theatre from Kern to Sondheim

The American musical is a relatively rude(a) traffic pattern which developed over the years legislateing up to the twentieth century. In the romantic period, heavy opera houses by composers such as Verdi and Puccini leash to a reaction in Europe where composers such as Offenbach began to write lighter harlequinade operas. In England during the late nineteenth century, gilbert and Sullivan developed the form in their DOyly Carte opera productions. Speech was introduced, and the operettas developed until they were almost plays with songs. Also contrary to ideas at the time, they mocked Victorian social propriety and class distinction. When interpreted to America, these operettas make American counterparts such as The Black Crook look unsophisticated, which lead to Gilbert and Sullivan increasing in popularity. Also popular in America at the time was Vaudeville, theatrical entertainment with compoundings of songs, dances, comedy and acrobatics. This was strongly influenced by the style of Gilbert and Sullivan, and many Gilbert and Sullivan songs would have probably been performed in Vaudeville houses as in that respect were no effective international copyright laws at the time. The combination of these two genres lead to the development of the American musical, which was a hand over with a story line containing songs which could also be taken out and performed separately without loosing their appeal.

There was one obvious throw in where this new form could grow and develop. Broadway, spic-and-span York, had been the centre of the music print industry in America for many years, and was the obvious place for composers to sell their work because of this and because of the money in the area - New York was the richest city in the world. The street gained the nickname Tin Pan Alley because of the bottom of pianos and other instruments playing music for potential customers in the...

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