Quiz 11-13 Flashcards
Who composed ‘The Merry Widow’, and when was it produced in the U.S.?
Franz Lehár; 1907
What is the irony of the success of ‘The Belle of New York’?
It is an irony that the first real step toward an era when America would dominate musical theater worldwide was taken by a show that Americans didn’t like.
Why was Herbert’s ‘Naughty Marietta’ difficult for amateur opera companies to produce?
The “Italian Street Song”; the role of Marietta requires a coloratura soprano, who not only can sing quite high, but whose voice must be supple, capable of singing rapid scales, leaps, and trills with ease.
What was the squabble between Herbert and Emma Trentini?
Trentini became a total primadonna, and Herbert was not one to swallow an insult. Then, he was commissioned by Arthur Hammerstein to write a second star vehicle for Trentini. Telling Hammerstein that he had never been so insulted in his entire career, Herbert refused to write a note of the new score. Rudolf Friml got the job instead, and Friml got along much better with Trentini. In fact, Friml’s wife later sued him for divorce because of adultery, naming Trentini as the “other woman”
Who was Rida Johnson Young?
One of the few women active as a writer or composer on Broadway
What is ASCAP, how did Herbert help ASCAP, and what is the modern alternative organization to ASCAP?
ASCAP is an organization to protect creative artists and publishers from pirated performances of their music; In 1915, Herbert heard that a restaurant orchestra was entertaining the diners with one of Herbert’s pieces. Herbert therefore launched ASCAP’s test case. He sued the restaurant, arguing that he should be paid when his work was played; Broadcast Music Incorporated (BMI) is similar.
How does revue differ from vaudeville?
In a vaudeville show, each separate specialty act had differ-ent performers. In a revue, the same performers appeared throughout the evening in the various skits.
What year marks the first production of ‘Ziegfield Follies’? (Not the title itself, but the concept and the producer.)
1907
Who was Bert Williams?
An African American performer in ‘Ziegfiled Follies’; this significant hiring racially integrated the Broadway revue for the first time
What are some other names of other series of revues?
Irving Berlin’s ‘Music Box Revues’ and George White’s ‘George White’s Scandals’.
What is a modern revue series? (Class info, not the modern revues mentioned in book.)
Revues are often common today as student entertainment; ‘Closer Than Ever’ by Richard Maltby Jr. and David Shire
With which series of revues is George Gershwin especially identified?
George White’s Scandals
What did the revues particularly encourage?
Choreographers and dancers
Early “musical comedies” were in the style of “Gaiety shows” imported from England. What does that mean?
Shaped desire for musicals to have grace, charm, and—perhaps most important—cohesion
What is the significance of ‘In Dahomey’?
One of the earliest musical comedies produced by African-Americans
How did George M. Cohan shape his shows to be different from operetta?
He displayed a fervent patriotism in his productions.
Name three of Cohan’s songs, and two of his shows
‘You’re a Grand Old Flag’, ‘Over There’, and ‘The Yankee Doodle Boy’; ‘Little Johnny Jones’ & ‘Going Up’
What’s the story with Cohan and Equity?
In 1919, when the fledgling Actor’s Equity Association called a general strike among its members in order to force theaters to recognize it as a bargaining representative, Cohan was outraged when his actor friends did not line up with him against Equity. He swore that he’d abandon theater and become an elevator operator if the actors won. A strike leader retorted, “Some-body better tell Mr. Cohan that to run an elevator he’d have to join a union.” Equity added fuel to the conflict by posting a sign in its office window that read, “WANTED—ELEVATOR OPERATOR—GEORGE M. COHAN PREFERRED.” Cohan felt betrayed, and he regarded Equity’s ultimate triumph as a personal defeat. Embittered, he pulled his name from membership in the Friars and the Lambs (two theatrical clubs), and he broke up his long-standing partnership with Harris.
Who wrote the Princess Shows?
Jerome Kern, Guy Bolton, and Schuyler Greene
Where were the Princess Shows produced?
Princess Theatre, a small venue in New York
When were most Princess Shows produced?
1915
What are some titles of Princess Shows?
‘Nobody Home’ & ‘Very Good Eddie’
What is Wodehouse famous for, beyond the Princess shows?
He is an author
What does the title “Very Good Eddie” mean?
A ventriloquist’s dummy was called an “eddie” by vaudevillians, and a “very good eddie” was a cooperative, compliant dummy.
