- 326 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub
About this book
New York Times Bestseller: "Both revelatory and entertaining . . . Along the way, Viertel provides some fascinating Broadway history." â
The New York Times Book Review
Americans invented musicalsâand have a longstanding love affair with them. But what, exactly, is a musical? In this book, longtime theatrical producer and writer Jack Viertel takes them apart, puts them back together, sings their praises, and occasionally despairs over their more embarrassing shortcomings. In the process, he shows us how musicals happen, what makes them work, how they captivate audiences, and how one landmark show leads to the nextâby design or by accident, by emulation or by rebellionâfrom Oklahoma! to Hamilton and onward.
Beginning with an overture and concluding with a curtain call, with stops in between for "I Want" songs, "conditional" love songs, production numbers, star turns, and finales, Viertel shows us patterns in the architecture of classic shows and charts the inevitable evolution that has taken place in musical theater as America itself has evolved socially and politically. The Secret Life of the American Musical makes you feel like you're there in the rehearsal room, the front row, and the offices of theater owners and producers as they pursue their own love affair with that rare and elusive beastâthe Broadway hit.
"A valuable addition to the theater lover's bookshelf. . . . fans will appreciate the dips into memoir and Viertel's takes on original cast albums." â Publishers Weekly
"Even seasoned hands will come away with a clearer understanding of why some shows work while others flop." â Commentary
"A showstopper . . . infectiously entertaining." âJohn Lahr, author of Notes on a Cowardly Lion
"Thoroughly interesting." â The A.V. Club
"The best general-audience analysis of musical theater I have read in many years." â The Charlotte Observer
"Delightful . . . a little bit history, a little bit memoir, a little bit criticism and, for any theater fan, a whole lot of fun." â The Dallas Morning News
Americans invented musicalsâand have a longstanding love affair with them. But what, exactly, is a musical? In this book, longtime theatrical producer and writer Jack Viertel takes them apart, puts them back together, sings their praises, and occasionally despairs over their more embarrassing shortcomings. In the process, he shows us how musicals happen, what makes them work, how they captivate audiences, and how one landmark show leads to the nextâby design or by accident, by emulation or by rebellionâfrom Oklahoma! to Hamilton and onward.
Beginning with an overture and concluding with a curtain call, with stops in between for "I Want" songs, "conditional" love songs, production numbers, star turns, and finales, Viertel shows us patterns in the architecture of classic shows and charts the inevitable evolution that has taken place in musical theater as America itself has evolved socially and politically. The Secret Life of the American Musical makes you feel like you're there in the rehearsal room, the front row, and the offices of theater owners and producers as they pursue their own love affair with that rare and elusive beastâthe Broadway hit.
"A valuable addition to the theater lover's bookshelf. . . . fans will appreciate the dips into memoir and Viertel's takes on original cast albums." â Publishers Weekly
"Even seasoned hands will come away with a clearer understanding of why some shows work while others flop." â Commentary
"A showstopper . . . infectiously entertaining." âJohn Lahr, author of Notes on a Cowardly Lion
"Thoroughly interesting." â The A.V. Club
"The best general-audience analysis of musical theater I have read in many years." â The Charlotte Observer
"Delightful . . . a little bit history, a little bit memoir, a little bit criticism and, for any theater fan, a whole lot of fun." â The Dallas Morning News
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Yes, you can access The Secret Life of the American Musical by Jack Viertel in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Media & Performing Arts & Music. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.
Information
Table of contents
- Cover
- Title Page
- Copyright Notice
- Dedication
- Tuning Up: or, How I Came to Write This Book
- A Note About the Shows Discussedâand a Few Other Matters
- 1. Overture
- 2. Curtain Up, Light the Lights: Opening Numbers
- 3. The Wizard and I: The âI Wantâ Song
- 4. If I Loved You: Conditional Love Songs
- 5. Put On Your Sunday Clothes: The Noise
- 6. Bushwhacking 1: Second Couples
- 7. Bushwhacking 2: Villains
- 8. Bushwhacking 3: The Multiplot, and How It Thickens
- 9. Adelaideâs Lament: Stars
- 10. Tevyeâs Dream: Tent Poles
- 11. La Vie Bohème: Curtain: Act 1
- 12. Intermission
- 13. Clambake: Curtain Up: Act 2
- 14. Suddenly Seymour: The Candy Dish
- 15. All er Nothinâ: Beginning to Pack
- 16. The Small House of Joseph Smith, the American Moses: The Main Event
- 17. I Thought You Did It for Me, Momma: The Next-to-Last Scene
- 18. You Canât Stop the Beat: The End
- 19. Curtain Call: How Woody Guthrieâof All PeopleâChanged Broadway Musicals Forever
- Notes
- Listening to Broadway
- Index
- Acknowledgments
- A Note About the Author
- Newsletter Sign-up
- Contents
- Copyright