Beginnings
Musicals have been evolving for a long time. Ancient Greeks had plays with songs and Roman comedies had music. However back then they were not yet called musicals. Many people consider that there are 3 very important musicals that launched the American musical theatre. The Beggar's Opera was one of those musicals and it was successful and did well. The Beggar's Opera ran and was acclaimed for a long time. The Beggar’s Opera had a lasting value and it came out in 1728. The Black Crook was another and it is thought by many historians that it was the 1st American musical. The Black Crook came out in the 1860’s and with its success the American musical began to take off and it opened the way for development of the American musical. The Black Crook combined both drama with music and acting. The opening night performance lasted from 7:45pm to 1:15am. The Black Crook lasted for 16 months, was revived constantly and would tour the US for more than 40 years. Another musical that is said to be one of the three is Showboat. It was written by Jerome Kern and Roger Hammerstein II. "Showboat was an organic musical comedy. It told a story about something that was interpreted through words and music, something musicals had failed to do." This quote was said by Ethan Mordden from his book Better Foot Forward: The History of American Musical Theatre. Showboat was written in 1927 and was the most lasting hit of the 1920’s. The musical Evangeline that came out in 1874 had all of the songs composed by the same man, Edward E. Rice. Musicals as we know them today began in the 1800’s. Operettas began to change with time. French and Viennese Operettas began the start of the evolving of the types of musicals. Jacques Offenbach from Paris and Johann Strauss II from Vienna were the firsts musicians whose work became internationally popular. The Beggar’s Opera along with British Ballad Operas, Burlettas and Pantomimes formed the majority of musicals offered on American stages right into the 1800’s. Musicals were also done as minstrel shows and later they became a new form of musical called Vaudeville. Minstrel shows were influenced by the Middle Ages and morality plays also came along. Morality plays however, had little if any influence on the modern musical. There were types of musicals known as Burlesque and Vienna and they were about romance. Soon, musicals would be known as Princess shows and then those shows finally were known as musicals. The contemporary Broadway show is made up of all different parts of the old forms of musicals. Its form comes from Operetta and it got its comic soul from the different forms of entertainment that delighted America from the mid 1800’s and on.
Sources
Gänzl,Kurt
The Musical:A Concise History
Copyright 1997
Green,Stanley
The World Of Musical Comedy
Enlarged and Revised Edition
Last Published in 1968
Kenrick,John
Musicals on Stage: A Capsule History
Updated September 30, 2002, Seen on 9/14/2008
http://www.musicals101.com/stagecap.htm
Mordden,Ethan
Better Foot Forward
Musical Theatre
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musical_theatre
Updated Septemeber 11, 2008
Seen on September 12,2008
Russell,Micheal
"Musical Guide-A Brief History of Musicals"
http://ezinearticles.com/?Musical-Guide---A-Brief-History-Of-Musicals&id=149474
Updated 2/21/06
Seen on 9/12/08
