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In the 1920s,
theater in the United States
Theater in the United States is part of the old European theatrical tradition and has been heavily influenced by the British theater. The central hub of the American theater scene is Manhattan, with its divisions of Broadway, Off-Broadway, and ...
and the
cinema of the United States
The cinema of the United States, consisting mainly of major film studios (also known as Hollywood) along with some independent film, has had a large effect on the global film industry since the early 20th century. The dominant style of Ame ...
were both increasingly active. Broadway was reaching its peak, classic theatre was working to be recognized, and the cinema business was growing as well. Within this decade, there were many changes within the social, economic, and legal environment in the United States, and these changes were often reflected into the art forms of the time period. In the 1920s, theatre utilized jazz, Vaudeville, straight plays, and musicals.
Jazz
A defining aspect of theatre of the 1920s was the development of
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...
.
Jazz was credited with being the “first distinctively American art form to disseminate US culture, style, and modernity across the globe".
Jazz's spread across the globe also applied to American lives and art forms. During
Prohibition
Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic ...
, “jazz cabarets and nightclubs would often stage elaborate floor shows that patrons could watch and participate in” and would hire performers like comedians and actors in order to bring an “adaption of Vaudeville comedy to the nightclub”.
Performances were often used in clubs and
speakeasies
A speakeasy, also called a blind pig or blind tiger, is an illicit establishment that sells alcoholic beverages, or a retro style bar that replicates aspects of historical speakeasies.
Speakeasy bars came into prominence in the United States d ...
in order to hide the fact that people were flocking in for illegal alcohol, which led to the “upgrade of entertainment into a small Vaudeville show”.
Speakeasies, due to their highly theatrical and liberal atmosphere, allowed for theatre to permeate everyday behavior.
Theatrical practices
Other common theatrical practices, particularly in the early 1920s, were musical revues, which had musical scenes, dramatic sketches, and Vaudeville-type performances.
In the 1920s, theatre was categorized into two main divisions: “legitimate" or classical theatre, serious and dramatic plays, and musical, comedy, and commercial theatre, which tended to be more upbeat and happy.
Vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...
in the 1920s was one of the largest forms of entertainment and was a rival to legitimate theatre. Vaudeville is a genre of theatre that encompasses a variety of small performances, where each act is unrelated to one another. Performers in Vaudeville specialized in one skill and repeated these skills at performances. Vaudeville was known for being more condensed in attempts to reaching out to the American middle class. Because of its theaters, affordable housing, receptive audience, and recreational activities, Los Angeles became a favorite city for Vaudeville performers. This shift of theatre towards the West began the start of “Vaudeville-only” theaters. Vaudeville became a large part of many communities in the 1920s. However, as the popularity of
film
A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
grew in the late 1920s, Vaudeville began to fall out of favor. Many former Vaudeville stars, such as
Charlie Chaplin
Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is consider ...
and
Burt Williams, left Vaudeville to become
silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, when ...
actors.
Legitimate and non-commercial theatre
The
legitimate theatre
Legitimate theatre is live performance that relies almost entirely on diegetic elements, with actors performing through speech and natural movement.Joyce M. Hawkins and Robert Allen, eds. "Legitimate" entry. ''The Oxford Encyclopedic English Dicti ...
category mostly comprises classic plays (i.e.
Greek tragedies
Greek tragedy is a form of theatre from Ancient Greece and Greek inhabited Anatolia. It reached its most significant form in Athens in the 5th century BC, the works of which are sometimes called Attic tragedy.
Greek tragedy is widely believed t ...
,
Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
, etc.) and straight plays, usually in the style of
realism
Realism, Realistic, or Realists may refer to:
In the arts
*Realism (arts), the general attempt to depict subjects truthfully in different forms of the arts
Arts movements related to realism include:
*Classical Realism
*Literary realism, a move ...
. For the most part, legitimate theatre denounced
improvisation
Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...
and theatre that was only meant to bring amusement.
The ultimate goal of many performers was to allow America's theatre practice to be seen as worthwhile and comparable to European theatre practices, and for the country to be recognized as a viable center of dramatic art. The various institutions pushing the legitimization of American theatre included the
Theatre Guild
The Theatre Guild is a theatrical society founded in New York City in 1918 by Lawrence Langner, Philip Moeller, Helen Westley and Theresa Helburn. Langner's wife, Armina Marshall, then served as a co-director. It evolved out of the work of the W ...
, The Civic Repertory Theatre, and various “little theaters". Of the many playwrights of this era,
Eugene O’Neill
Eugene Gladstone O'Neill (October 16, 1888 – November 27, 1953) was an American playwright and Nobel laureate in literature. His poetically titled plays were among the first to introduce into the U.S. the drama techniques of realism, earlier ...
was one of the biggest proponents for “bringing American theatre to maturity” and was thus one of the most well-known playwrights of the time.
It was playwrights like O’Neill that wanted to progress America's theatre into tackling real issues, like poverty (''
The Hairy Ape
''The Hairy Ape'' is a 1922 expressionist play by American playwright Eugene O'Neill. It is about a beastly, unthinking laborer known as Yank, the protagonist of the play, as he searches for a sense of belonging in a world controlled by the rich ...
),'' alcoholism, unstable lifestyles, interracial marriage, and sex equality, among other things.
Musical comedy and commercial theatre
Broadway
![The Broadway Peacock (1922) - 2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/The_Broadway_Peacock_%281922%29_-_2.jpg)
The twenties were a time of extreme growth for the musical and
Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
industry. Musicals and musical comedies were considered “all-American” and were the biggest money-makers in the industry.
Musicals were sometimes considered “commercial theatre” —with flashy lights, outrageous costumes, and scandalous stage behavior, many musicals were considered trivial and superficial, existing simply for entertainment and money-making purposes. Despite this criticism, especially from the legitimate theatre world, this form of theatre reached its peak in the 1920s, during the “
jazz age”. Jazz music and jazz culture were highly influential in the proliferation of musical comedies. Some of the most renowned composers and writers of the 1920s were
Irving Berlin
Irving Berlin (born Israel Beilin; yi, ישראל ביילין; May 11, 1888 – September 22, 1989) was a Russian-American composer, songwriter and lyricist. His music forms a large part of the Great American Songbook.
Born in Imperial Russi ...
,
Richard Rodgers
Richard Charles Rodgers (June 28, 1902 – December 30, 1979) was an American Musical composition, composer who worked primarily in musical theater. With 43 Broadway musicals and over 900 songs to his credit, Rodgers was one of the most ...
,
Jerome Kern
Jerome David Kern (January 27, 1885 – November 11, 1945) was an American composer of musical theatre and popular music. One of the most important American theatre composers of the early 20th century, he wrote more than 700 songs, used in over ...
, and
George Gershwin
George Gershwin (; born Jacob Gershwine; September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) was an American composer and pianist whose compositions spanned popular, jazz and classical genres. Among his best-known works are the orchestral compositions ' ...
. Some musicals which were popular in the 1920s were ''
Tip-Toes
''Tip-Toes'' is a musical with a book by Guy Bolton and Fred Thompson, lyrics by Ira Gershwin, and music by George Gershwin. It centers on a vaudeville act composed of Tip-Toes, her brother and her uncle, who try to pass her off as an aristocrat ...
'' and ''
Show Boat
''Show Boat'' is a musical with music by Jerome Kern and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II. It is based on Edna Ferber's best-selling 1926 novel of the same name. The musical follows the lives of the performers, stagehands and dock worke ...
''.
Cinema
In addition to live performance,
Hollywood movies
The cinema of the United States, consisting mainly of major film studios (also known as Hollywood) along with some independent film, has had a large effect on the global film industry since the early 20th century. The dominant style of Amer ...
are also a key aspect of 1920s theatre history. Although
the first movie was made in the late 1800s, movies began to gain traction in the 1920s, which led to a decline in the popularity of theater. With over 20 studios by the end of the 1920s, the movie making industry released an average of 800 films a year during this decade, compared to today's average of 500.
Silent film
![The Valley of Silent Men (1922) - 4](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/93/The_Valley_of_Silent_Men_%281922%29_-_4.jpg)
Until 1927, all movies were silent. The actors were skilled in
pantomime
Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment. It was developed in England and is performed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and (to a lesser extent) in other English-speaking ...
, gestures, and facial expressions, but no recorded talking or lines were included in the movies. The only words that signaled actions or lines to the viewer were written on title cards. Title cards would pop up when important plot developments needed to be cleared up, or specific lines were supposed to be included.
However, despite the lack of spoken word, there was often music and sound effects added after the fact. In order to add music to the movie, pianists, organists, and orchestras would accompany the film.
Because of this, American silent films were often able to be shown universally and the same story would be communicated to most audiences, regardless of their language. Another key feature of
silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, when ...
s was the speed—on average, the film reels were sped up by about four times the usual speed. This was done in order to make time for a matinee as well as an evening show in theaters.
Silent film stars
Beauty was highly appreciated in this era of film, and the stars of the industry reflected this. Despite the floating ideals of whiteness in America, many Hispanic men and women shared in this iconic era of beauty. In fact, the contribution of Hispanic Americans to the movie industry was highly important. For example, when Roman Novarro starred in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's production of ''Ben Hur: Tale of the Christ'' in 1925, the company was saved from bankruptcy due to his popularity and skill. However, even though they were successful in the film industry, most Hispanic actors were relegated to three main stereotypes on screen (although some were able to take on “white” roles): the greaser, the Latin lover, or the dark seductress.
Hollywood loved on-screen couples as well—they were marketable and romantic. One such couple,
Janet Gaynor
Janet Gaynor (born Laura Augusta Gainor; October 6, 1906 – September 14, 1984) was an American film, stage, and television actress.
Gaynor began her career as an extra in shorts and silent films. After signing with Fox Film Corporation (later ...
and
Charles Farrell
Charles David Farrell (August 9, 1900 – May 6, 1990) was an American film actor of the 1920s silent era and into the 1930s, and later a television actor. Farrell is probably best recalled for his onscreen romances with actress Janet Gaynor ...
, starred together in 12 films and were dubbed “America’s sweethearts.”
Talkies
![The Jazz Singer 1927 Poster](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d2/The_Jazz_Singer_1927_Poster.jpg)
The first film including synchronized sound and audible lines was ''
The Jazz Singer
''The Jazz Singer'' is a 1927 American musical drama film directed by Alan Crosland. It is the first feature-length motion picture with both synchronized recorded music score as well as lip-synchronous singing and speech (in several isolated ...
'' in 1927. Many of the talking films in the twenties revolved around Broadway in plot and theme. At the end of the decade, movie musicals were popular, especially in 1929, since they took special advantage of the addition of sound by having singing. Some prominent examples of movie musicals from this time were ''Broadway'', ''
Gold Diggers of Broadway
''Gold Diggers of Broadway'' is a 1929 American pre-Code musical comedy film directed by Roy Del Ruth and starring Winnie Lightner and Nick Lucas. Distributed by Warner Bros., the film is the second all-talking, all-Technicolor feature-length fi ...
'', and ''
The Hollywood Revue of 1929
''The Hollywood Revue of 1929'', or simply ''The Hollywood Revue'', is a 1929 American Pre-Code Hollywood, pre-Code musical comedy film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was the studio's second feature-length musical, and one of their earliest ...
.'' Most big film companies took advantage of the increasing popularity of movie musicals until 1930, when they were deemed too expensive and impractical to continue mass-producing.
Issues with sound
When sound was first introduced, there were a number of complications. First of all, most of the famous actors from the
Silent Era
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, wh ...
, who were primarily
pantomime
Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment. It was developed in England and is performed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and (to a lesser extent) in other English-speaking ...
s, had untrained voices and were incapable of expressing the necessary emotions with the addition of words. This voice struggle led to the end of many previously successful acting careers. Some had voices that were not compatible with the microphones, some had voices that were too high, too husky, or too soft, and some could not act convincingly. Because of this, many companies began to hire a higher number of “theatre” actors, who were familiar with using their voices. Along with actors, film studios began to hire playwrights to write scripts, as the new addition of lines was a struggle for some filmmakers. In fact, many of the first talking films were just filmed adaptations of previously existing stage plays.
Additionally, movie studios had to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on new sound equipment or on soundproofing certain rooms. This new equipment, though innovative, was difficult to work with at times. The microphones were large and sensitive to movement, so they were typically placed strategically within props and set pieces that the actor would be next to during certain lines of dialogue, which was often difficult to work with. Moving the cameras also proved to be fairly noisy and was picked up on the recordings. To remedy this, many studios started practicing the “frozen camera” technique, where cameras were placed in a soundproof room and recorded through the glass, with a wide shot so it would not have to pan or move.
Main companies
Within the film industry, there were several main companies, five of which were considered the “Big Five” and three of which were considered the “Little Three”. Many of these companies exist still today. The Big Five consisted of
Warner Brothers
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American Film studio, film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank, Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, Califo ...
,
Famous Players-Lasky Corporation
Famous Players-Lasky Corporation was an American motion picture and distribution company formed on June 28, 1916, from the merger of Adolph Zukor's Famous Players Film Company—originally formed by Zukor as Famous Players in Famous Plays—and ...
(later
Paramount Studios
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production and distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldest film studio in the world, the second-oldest ...
, 1927),
Radio-Keith-Orpheum Pictures, Loew's, Inc. (later
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...
), and
Fox Film Corporation
The Fox Film Corporation (also known as Fox Studios) was an American Independent film production studio formed by William Fox (1879–1952) in 1915, by combining his earlier Greater New York Film Rental Company and Box Office Attractions Film ...
. The Little Three consisted of
Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...
,
United Artists
United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the studi ...
, and
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...
.
See also
*
Jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...
*
Vaudeville
Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...
*
Legitimate theater
Legitimate theatre is live performance that relies almost entirely on diegetic elements, with actors performing through speech and natural movement.Joyce M. Hawkins and Robert Allen, eds. "Legitimate" entry. ''The Oxford Encyclopedic English Dicti ...
*
Cinema of the United States
The cinema of the United States, consisting mainly of major film studios (also known as Hollywood) along with some independent film, has had a large effect on the global film industry since the early 20th century. The dominant style of Ame ...
*
Theater in the United States
Theater in the United States is part of the old European theatrical tradition and has been heavily influenced by the British theater. The central hub of the American theater scene is Manhattan, with its divisions of Broadway, Off-Broadway, and ...
*
The Public Theater
The Public Theater is a New York City arts organization founded as the Shakespeare Workshop in 1954 by Joseph Papp, with the intention of showcasing the works of up-and-coming playwrights and performers.Epstein, Helen. ''Joe Papp: An American Li ...
References
{{Reflist
Theatre in the United States