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Love Life (musical)
''Love Life'' is a musical written by Kurt Weill (music) and Alan Jay Lerner (book and lyrics). It opened at the 46th Street Theatre on Broadway (now the Richard Rodgers) on October 7, 1948, and closed on May 14, 1949, after having played 252 performances. The original production starred Ray Middleton and Nanette Fabray, was directed by Elia Kazan, and choreographed by Michael Kidd. The show told the story of a married couple, Sam and Susan Cooper, who never age as they progress from 1791 to 1948, encountering difficulties in their marriage (and thus the very fabric of marriage) as they struggle to cope with changing social mores. One of the earliest examples of the concept musical, the action of ''Love Life'' was interspersed with vaudeville-style numbers that commented on the story, in a way very similar to ''Cabaret'' (which opened in 1966). No official cast recording of ''Love Life'' has ever been made; a strike at the time of the original production prevented preserving the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kurt Weill
Kurt Julian Weill (March 2, 1900April 3, 1950) was a German-born American composer active from the 1920s in his native country, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fruitful collaborations with Bertolt Brecht. With Brecht, he developed productions such as his best-known work, ''The Threepenny Opera'', which included the ballad "Mack the Knife". Weill held the ideal of writing music that served a socially useful purpose,Kurt Weill Cjschuler.net. Retrieved on August 22, 2011. ''''. He also wrote several works for the concert hall and a number of works on Jewish themes. He became a United States citizen on August 27, 1943.
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Concept Musical
A concept musical is a work of musical theatre whose book and score are structured around conveying a theme or message, rather than emphasizing a narrative plot. Two 1940s shows compete for the title of "first concept musical": ''Allegro'' and '' Love Life''. The form began to flourish in the late 1960s, with the advent and subsequent popularity of ''Man of La Mancha'', ''Cabaret'', and ''Hair''. Stephen Sondheim, the most prolific author of concept musicals, created ''Company'' in 1970, bringing the genre to the forefront of the commercial realm. Director-choreographer Bob Fosse and producer-director Harold Prince were equally instrumental in making defining contributions to the concept musical. Modern examples of the concept musical include ''Assassins'' and ''Avenue Q''. Shows ranging from ''Fiddler on the Roof'' to ''Sweeney Todd'' have been argued as being concept musicals, though there is little critical agreement. The concept musical has direct ties to the megamusical, which ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Musicals By Alan Jay Lerner
Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an integrated whole. Although musical theatre overlaps with other theatrical forms like opera and dance, it may be distinguished by the equal importance given to the music as compared with the dialogue, movement and other elements. Since the early 20th century, musical theatre stage works have generally been called, simply, musicals. Although music has been a part of dramatic presentations since ancient times, modern Western musical theatre emerged during the 19th century, with many structural elements established by the works of Gilbert and Sullivan in Britain and those of Harrigan and Hart in America. These were followed by the numerous Edwardian musical comedies and the musical theatre w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Broadway Musicals
Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences), 130 of the 144 extant and extinct Broadway venues use (used) the spelling ''Theatre'' as the proper noun in their names (12 others used neither), with many performers and trade groups for live dramatic presentations also using the spelling ''theatre''. or Broadway, are the theatrical performances presented in the 41 professional theatres, each with 500 or more seats, located in the Theater District and the Lincoln Center along Broadway, in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Broadway and London's West End theatre, West End together represent the highest commercial level of live theater in the English-speaking world. While the thoroughfare is eponymous with the district and its collection of 41 theaters, and it is also closely identified with Times Square, only three of the theaters are located on Broadway itself (nam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1948 Musicals
Events January * January 1 ** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated. ** The Constitution of New Jersey (later subject to amendment) goes into effect. ** The railways of Britain are nationalized, to form British Railways. * January 4 – Burma gains its independence from the United Kingdom, becoming an independent republic, named the ''Union of Burma'', with Sao Shwe Thaik as its first President, and U Nu its first Prime Minister. * January 5 ** Warner Brothers shows the first color newsreel (''Tournament of Roses Parade'' and the ''Rose Bowl Game''). ** The first Kinsey Reports, Kinsey Report, ''Sexual Behavior in the Human Male'', is published in the United States. * January 7 – Mantell UFO incident: Kentucky Air National Guard pilot Thomas Mantell crashes while in pursuit of an unidentified flying object. * January 12 – Mahatma Gandhi begins his fast-unto-death in Delhi, to stop communal violence during the Partition of India. * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gigi (1958 Film)
''Gigi'' () is a 1958 American musical romantic comedy film directed by Vincente Minnelli and processed using Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's Eastmancolor film process Metrocolor. The screenplay by Alan Jay Lerner is based on the 1944 novella of the same name by Colette. The film features songs with lyrics by Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe, arranged and conducted by André Previn. Costume design by Cecil Beaton (hats by ). At the 31st Academy Awards, the film won all nine of its nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director for Minnelli. It held the record for the highest clean sweep of nominations until '' The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King'' won all eleven of its nominations at the 76th Academy Awards in 2004. In 1991, ''Gigi'' was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". The American Film Institute ranked it number 35 in '' AFI's 100 Years. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Where's Charley?
''Where's Charley?'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by George Abbott. The story was based on the 1892 play ''Charley's Aunt'' by Brandon Thomas. The musical debuted on Broadway in 1948 and was revived on Broadway and in the West End. Ray Bolger starred, and sang the popular song "Once In Love With Amy". Plot ;Act I The setting is Oxford University in the year 1892 where a group of college seniors are bidding farewell to the years gone by ("The Years Before Us"). In his dorm room, graduating Jack Chesney is excitedly talking with his butler, Brassett, making sure that luncheon will be ready for later that afternoon. He is so excited because his roommate, Charley Wykeham, has gone to the train station to meet his aunt, Donna Lucia D'Alvadorez, who is coming in from Brazil for a visit. Having Charley's aunt there as chaperone will make it quite easy for their two girl friends, Kitty Verdun and Amy Spettigue, to come for a visit. Charley does return â ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cabaret (musical)
''Cabaret'' is a 1966 musical theatre, musical with music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb, and book by Joe Masteroff. The musical was based on John Van Druten's 1951 play ''I Am a Camera'' which was adapted from ''Goodbye to Berlin'' (1939), a semi-autobiographical novel by Anglo-American writer Christopher Isherwood which drew upon his experiences in the poverty-stricken Weimar Republic and his intimate friendship with nineteen-year-old cabaret singer Jean Ross. Set in 1929–1930 Berlin during the twilight of the Jazz Age as the Nazi Party, Nazis are ascending to power, the musical focuses on the hedonistic nightlife at the seedy Kit Kat Klub and revolves around American writer Clifford Bradshaw's relations with English cabaret performer Sally Bowles. A subplot involves the doomed romance between German boarding house owner Fräulein Schneider and her elderly suitor Herr Schultz, a Anti-Jewish legislation in prewar Nazi Germany, Jewish fruit vendor. Overseeing the action ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Floating Timeline
A floating timeline (also known as a sliding timescale) is a device used in fiction, particularly in long-running serials in comics and animation as well as other media, to explain why characters Ageless, age little or not at all over a period of time—despite real-world markers like notable events, people and technology appearing in the works and correlating with the real world. The term "floating timeline" is used in the comics community to refer to series that take place in a "continuous present". This timeline is due to the fact that the authors have no need to accommodate the aging of their characters, which is also typical of most animated television shows. It is used as a plot device to "explain or explain away inconsistencies in the way that events and characters exist within a world". When certain stories in comics, especially origin stories, are rewritten, they often retain key events but are updated to a contemporary time, such as with the comic book character Tony Stark ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alan Jay Lerner
Alan Jay Lerner (August 31, 1918 – June 14, 1986) was an American lyricist and librettist. In collaboration with Frederick Loewe, and later Burton Lane, he created some of the world's most popular and enduring works of musical theatre both for the stage and on film. He won three Tony Awards and three Academy Awards, among other honors. Early life and education Born in New York City, he was the son of Edith Adelson Lerner and Joseph Jay Lerner, whose brother, Samuel Alexander Lerner, was founder and owner of the Lerner Stores, a chain of dress shops. One of Lerner's cousins was the radio comedian and television game show panelist Henry Morgan (comedian), Henry Morgan. Lerner was educated at Bedales School in England, Choate Rosemary Hall, The Choate School (now Choate Rosemary Hall) in Wallingford, Connecticut, (where he wrote "The Choate Marching Song") and Harvard University, Harvard. He attended both Camp Androscoggin and Camp Greylock. At both Choate and Harvard, Lerner ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Michael Kidd
Michael Kidd (August 12, 1915 – December 23, 2007) was an American film and stage choreographer, dancer and actor, whose career spanned five decades, and staged some of the leading Broadway and film musicals of the 1940s and 1950s. Kidd, strongly influenced by Charlie Chaplin and Léonide Massine, was an innovator in what came to be known as the "integrated musical", in which dance movements are integral to the plot. He was probably best known for his athletic dance numbers in ''Seven Brides for Seven Brothers'', a 1954 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musical. Film critic Stephanie Zacharek called the barn-raising sequence in ''Seven Brides'' "one of the most rousing dance numbers ever put on screen". He was the first choreographer to win five Tony Awards, and was awarded an honorary Oscar in 1996 for advancing dance in film. Early life and dance career Kidd was born Milton Greenwald, in New York City on the Lower East Side, the son of Abraham Greenwald, a barber, and his wife Lillian, w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Elia Kazan
Elia Kazan (; born Elias Kazantzoglou ( el, Ηλίας Καζαντζόγλου); September 7, 1909 – September 28, 2003) was an American film and theatre director, producer, screenwriter and actor, described by ''The New York Times'' as "one of the most honored and influential directors in Broadway and Hollywood history". Born in Constantinople (now Istanbul), to Cappadocian Greek parents, his family came to the United States in 1913. After attending Williams College and then the Yale School of Drama, he acted professionally for eight years, later joining the Group Theatre in 1932, and co-founded the Actors Studio in 1947. With Robert Lewis and Cheryl Crawford, his actors' studio introduced "Method Acting" under the direction of Lee Strasberg. Kazan acted in a few films, including ''City for Conquest'' (1940). His films were concerned with personal or social issues of special concern to him. Kazan writes, "I don't move unless I have some empathy with the basic theme." His ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
