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24 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Broadway: The Twentieth-Century American Musical |
A N T E C E D E N T S |
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Describe what 'Vaudeville' was and when the entertainment form emerged. |
- early 1900s -The most popular performance form of this era; thousands of theatres across the country hosted 'bills' of 'acts' -Included comedians, singers, magicians - which changed every week |
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What did 'Burlesque' shows consist of? |
- adult entertainment, a form of musical extravaganza or variety show -glamorous, risqué leg-kicking of the Ziegfeld 'Follies' |
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Describe what 'Revues' consisted of. |
- they were plotless shows that provided first-class performance and design e.g Ziegfeld's 'Follies'-these shows were produced on Broadway |
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Describe what a variety show consisted of. |
-variety stages were local music halls that catered to the ethnic identity of their neighbourhoods -similar to vaudeville shows in that they contained plotless acts with different art forms that were unrelated or could stand alone |
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What were 'Minstrel Shows'? |
- appeared in the mid 19th century-both white and black performers sang, danced and imitated/joked in 'blackface' -it was extremely derogatory towards the image of African-Americans |
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Who was a famous minstrel performer of the mid-1900s? |
- Bert Williams - he performed in a 'double-act' singing, dancing and clowning with George Walker - joined the annual Ziegfeld 'Follies' in 1910, became its primary comedian for a decade |
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Why did black performers take part in the heavily racist minstrel shows? |
Because they felt that 'by being made fun of...they were included in America' - Philip Furia |
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Who was a famous variety show performer in the 1900s? |
- Fanny Brice; singer on the variety stages of Coney Island and Newark -made her 'Follies' debut in 1910 - parodied famous people in a fake Yiddish accent, compelling singing making her the greatest comedienne of her generation |
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What is operetta? |
-a light opera with a comic theme and spoken dialogue -influenced by English operettas of W.S Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan's jaunty melodies -it had dialogue, plot, characterisation and the singing intentionally moved the plot along unlike the other types of shows |
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Describe the 'Follies'. |
-'Glorifying the American Girl' -spectacular settings; colour and light, novelty acts, sketches -sex sells; ladies parading and posing, creating pretty images |
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Which show is often referred to as the first American musical? |
'Little Johnny Jones' - (1904) |
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Who wrote 'Little Johnny Jones' and which main songs did the show contain? |
- George M Cohan -'Give My Regards to Broadway' and 'Yankee Doodle Boy' -Cohan's background was in vaudeville, his achievement was to make the transition from this form to the 'respectable' stage |
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Which show was enormously influential in establishing the elements of plot and song into the musical? |
'The Merry Widow' - (1905) |
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Who wrote the lyrics and music and what was the show built on? |
-Austrian born composer Franz Lehar -was built on the tradition of operettaestablished in America, in the performances of Gilbert and Sullivan operas |
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When did Times Square open in New York? |
1904 |
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How were the subway stations effective for Broadway? |
They brought in more people than ever before, shows become business with tourism |
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Who brought jazz and ragtime into the public domain? |
Tin Pan Alley and composers like Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, George Gershwin and Alexander's Ragtime band |
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When did America enter into WWI and how did this effect Broadway? |
-1917 -brings patriotism to America and the audiences of musicals -The 'Follies' girls were encouraging solidarity, dressing up as troupes, through propaganda cheering the brace boys on |
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What happened during the 1890s that wholly effected America? |
-immigrants came from all over the world to the great ports of America like New York City to seek their fortune and freedom -they developed their own neighbourhoods and ethnic enclaves -some took advantage of the stage to offer ethnic comedy, dance and song to their fellow group members as a form of escapism |
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What did the immigrants begin to adopt over time? |
the characteristics and values of their new country, and their performances reflected this assimilation |
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Which composer is an example of an immigrant exhibiting American characteristics and values? |
Irving Berlin |
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When did Irving Berlin emigrate to America, where did he settle and where did his career begin? |
-born Israel Baline, small Russian village in 1888 -emigrated and settled in the Lower East Side of New York City in 1893 -he began as a strew singer, later turned to songwriting e.g he wrote 'There's No Business Like Show Business' |
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Who were the Gershwin brothers? |
Ira Gershwin was a lyricist whilst his brother, George, provided the melodies; they wrote many successful shows together such as 'Porgy and Bess' (1934) |
