Broadway musical theatre 4219-SD0085
The goal of this course is to provide students with a comprehensive overview of American musical theater's history, covering the period from the early 19th century to the first quarter of the 21st century, all within the framework of Northern American society's social and cultural transition.
In the first section of the course, we will look at the most significant 19th-century musical theater genres (such as vaudeville, burlesque, and minstrel show) and how they affected Broadway musicals in terms of social, political, and cultural elements. The early Broadway musicals (musical comedy, musical play, and operetta) from the 1900s through the 1965s will be the subject of the second half of the semester. We will look into the genre's rising popularity and the ways it impacted American culture.
Modern musical theater from 1965 will be the subject of the third and final section of the semester (concept musical, mega-musical, jukebox musical, etc.). The evolution of the literary and musical languages throughout this time will be discussed. We'll focus on problems that have impacted musical themes since the 1960s. From post-Vietnam War themes in rock operas and musicals in the 1960s and 1970s to the provocative theater of Stephen Sondheim, Jonathan Larson, and other contemporary composers, sociopolitical themes have flourished in theater. Examples of these themes include social injustice, racial prejudice, and imperial rivalry.
Type of course
Mode
Course coordinators
Learning outcomes
Knowledge:
1. Students know the basic terminology related to the detailed issues of the Broadway musical (K_W01)
2. on the basis of the texts they have learned, are able to characterize significant problems related to the American musical and draw critical conclusions (K_W05)
3. understand the complexity of the problem of analyzing a musical work (K_W05, K_W07)
Skills:
1. Students are able to select and critically evaluate texts on the American musical (K_U01)
are able to analyze, using various methods, musical works (K_U02)
are able to prepare a presentation on the problems of American musical theater (K_U06)
Social competencies:
Students are ready to critically perceive the content related to American musical theater (K_K01)
appreciate the richness of culture related to theatrical life in the United States (K_K08)
are ready to consciously participate in cultural life (K_K10)
Assessment criteria
Attendance and active participation in class (30%)
Essay on the analysis of a selected musical (70%)
Grades:
90-100%: excellent (A)
85-89%: very good (B)
78-84%: good (C)
68-77%: satisfactory (D)
60-67%: sufficient (E)
Bibliography
1. Burston, Jonathan, Stage, Neoconservatism, English Canada and the Megamusical, „Soundings”, 1997, no 5, pp. 179–190.
2. Clum, John M., Something for the Boys: Musical Theater and Gay Culture, St. Martin Press, New York, 1999, pp. 1–27.
3. Fraser, Elizabeth The Dream Shattered: America’s Seventies Musicals, „Journal of American Culture”, 1989, no 12(3), pp. 31–37.
4. Knapp, Raymond, The American Musical, and the Formation of National Identity, Princeton University Press, Princeton & Oxford, 2005, pp. 119–133/153–162
5. Lamm, Zachary, The Queer Pedagogy of Dr. Frank-N-Further, [w:] Reading “Rocky Horror”: “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” and Popular Culture, red. Jeffrey A. Weinstock, Palgrave MacMillan, New York, 2008, pp. 193–206.
6. Lott, Eric, Love and Theft: The Racial Unconcious of Blackface Minstrelsy, „Representations”, 1992, nr 39(2), pp. 23–39.
7. Lovensheimer, Jim, Stephen Sondheim and the Musical of the Outsider, [w:] The Cambridge Companion to the Musical, red. William A. Everett, Paul R. Laird, 2nd Edition, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2008, pp. 247–263.
8. Wolf, Stacy, Changed for Good: A Feminist History of the Broadway Musical, Oxford University Press, New York, 2011, pp. 25–51.
9. Wollman, Elizabeth L., Theater Will Rock: A History of the Rock Musical, from ‘Hair’ to ‘Hedwig’, The University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor, 2006, pp. 180-190.
Movies and videos:
1. Jesus Christ Superstar, dir. Norman Jewison, 1973.
2. The Rocky Horror Picture Show, dir. Jim Sherman, 1975.
3. Hair, dir. Miloš Forman, 1979.
4. Lion King, dir. Rob Minkoff, Roger Allers, 1994.
5. Rent, dir. Chris Columbus, 2005.
6. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, dir. Tim Burton, 2007.
7. Hamilton, dir. Thomas Kail, 2020.
Additional information
Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system: