LO1 - Know the Defining Features of a Repertoire

Musical Theatre Task One


 What is Repertoire in Musical theatre?​

  • Repertoire is a collection or list of skills or pieces of art. The term is often used when discussing actors, musicians and dancers, with it referring to the collection of creative pieces which they have prepared and can perform at any given time. These may be a mixture of disciplines with 'triple threat' performers often having a repertoire that generally consists of acting monologues, solo songs and dance solos which they use to display their skills. ​

  • However, there are many ways in which repertoire in musical Theatre can be defined. The first of which is ‘period’. It is important to consider at which point in time the Performance was originally created/composed/written. ​



Pre 1920's Musicals

  • In the early years of the 20th century the most popular form of entertainment was that of Vaudeville. At their core, these were variety shows with acts performing a wide range of things from comedy sketches, stunts and singing amongst many other things; with each show consisting of between 9 to 12 acts which would tour around different cities. Some of the most famous stars of film and musical theatre began their careers in Vaudeville and some even had parents who had their roots in Vaudeville which helped them find their love for performance. ​

  • However, in 1907 Florenz Ziegfeld Jr. an American Broadway Impresario would create one of the earliest forms of musical theatre in the form of a musical revue called "The Ziegfeld Follies". These performances were some of the first to incorporate all aspects of the performing arts: acting, singing and dance. There would be several of these revues all of which included a number of well known performers from the Vaudeville circuit. ​

  • Shows from this period generally referred to as Operettas were more involved in entertainment than plot and although the idea of a triple threat performer had been introduced, it was not very widespread at this time. 



The Jazz Age - (1920-1939)

  • As the 20s and Prohibition Era began rolling in, so did Jazz music with it becoming a big part of theatre shows and taking over centre stage from the Operettas of the pre-1920's. Most musicals of this era involved light-hearted stories, glamorous showgirls, extravagant dance numbers and musical revues. However in 1927 this would change when the first book musical, a musical where the songs are used to tell the narrative, would go on to be created; 'Showboat' which had music written by Jerome Kern and lyrics written by Oscar Hammerstein II. The play was based on 1926 book of the same name written by Edna Ferber. This was one of the first musicals to ever deal with issues such as racial prejudice and enduring love, the play almost overnight changed everything that a musical could be, marrying serious and tragic themes with grand spectacle of other musicals that grounded it instead of being an unrealistic story. ​

  • The Jazz era would see the rise of many stars of the first half of the 20th century, including the likes of Fred Astaire, Al Johnson and Marilyn Miller; however it would not just be actors who would see their careers take off many of the most famous composers and lyricists including: Oscar Hammerstein II, Jerome Kern, Richard Rodgers and George Gerschwinn amongst many more. 



The Jazz Age - (1920-1939) Continued…

  • However, things would take a dark turn towards the end of the 20s with the Great Depression. The almost fairytale like escapism was needed now more than ever to lift the spirits of the nation and help them to get through this tough time. Shows from this time included many light-hearted and flirtatious themes, with many having romantic elements to them. ​

  • One of the best examples of the types of musicals from this period is the 1934 book musical: 'Anything Goes'. This musical was written by Cole Porter, who was one of the most famous composers and lyricists of the period and starred Ethel Mermon (One of the most famous stars of the 30s and 40s). This play had themes of a love triangle all while having up-beat and energetic songs. One of the most recognisable is "Anything Goes" written by Cole Porter himself, that talks about certain big figures of society of the period and pokes fun of them in a very light-hearted way set to the background of an incredibly iconic tap dance.



The Golden Age - (1940-1959)

  • As the forties came rolling around, musicals began playing an even bigger role in pop culture. Shows still included many of the cheerful and feel good themes as that of the jazz age, however storytelling was taking on an ever more important role within the musical and the dance became an even more apparent part of the piece and even contributed to the storytelling aspect of musicals. The musical as we know it today was truly in full swing. ​

  • The 40s would also see the rise of one of the greatest musical duos of all time: Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. Their partnership would spark the creation of some of the most famous musicals to date, including the 1943 musical "Oklahoma!" Which was not only their first collaboration, byt one of the furst musicals to fully incooperate all elements of the arts which Agnes De Mille's Dream Ballet breaking new ground of what dance could add to a musical. Other works of theirs include "Carousel" (1945), "South Pacific" (1949), "The King and I" (1951) and arguably their most famous and final musical: "The Sound of Music" from 1959; over their partnership together that spanned less than 20 years, they wrote 9 musicals and changed everything that a msucial should be almost over night. 



The Golden Age - (1940-1959) Continued…

  • The 40s and 50s would also see the rise of Hollywood and the film industry as a whole, with many of the biggest stars of Broadway also starring in movies known as "Talkies" due to the fact that talking picture films were still a very new phenomenon. Stars would be within these movies included the likes of Fred Astaire however this era would also see the rise of many of the great actors of the golden age including Gene Kelly, Judy Garland and Julie Andrews. ​

  • It is also vital to mention the importance of particular musical from this era, that being the 1957 musical "West Side Story". It was hailed as groundbreaking at the time for the way it was able to intergrate acting, singing, dance and set. With the story telling the classic tragic love story of Romeo and Juillet with a more modern twist adding many moral and topical issues surrounding race, gender roles, gang warfare and both gender and race equality. 



Post Golden Age - (1960-1969)

  • Musicals from this era started developing beyond way beyond the types of stories that their predecessors told, with them splitting away from the fairytale and light-hearted stories of the golden age. Broadway musicals changed to have darker and more real moral themes as creators were influenced by the cultural upheaval of the decade. ​

  • This decade saw prominent practitioners such as Bob Fosse and with him came shows such as Cabaret which was a musical set in one of the kit kat clubs of 1930s Berlin. The play tackles issues such as sexuality and how the decline of Berlin in the 30s led to the rise of the Nazi party. ​

  • However, there was also a rise of musicals in the UK with practitioners like Anderw Lloyd Webber creating musicals such as Jesus Christ Superstar in 1968, which would you be the first of many musicals he would release over the coming decades. ​

  • One of the musicals that sums up this era best is the 1968 book musical "HAIR". It was known for being a product of the hippie counterculture and detailed topics such as sexuality and interracial relationships and even discussess illegal drugs and nudity which were a big part of the hippie movement.



Pre-contemporary - (1970-1999)

  • The success of "HAIR" in the late 60s saw the rise of rock musicals, they continued to have a more pessimistic flare and critiqued society; with musicals like "A Chorus Line" and "Chicago" (1975) that both took a deep dive on the harmful impacts that the performing arts industry can have on those involved, with themes such as greed, struggles with wealth and the effects that fame can have. All of these make the shows of the Pre-Contemporary era a far cry from that of the Golden Age with many of the dreamy and idyllic storylines of the American dream scrapped for something more realistic and thought provoking. ​

  • With the 80s came a wider range of musical styles with more complex and longer storylines with Film musicals, a genre of film where the songs are interwoven into the story and are often accompanied by dance, such as "42nd Street" (1980) and "Hairspray" (1988) and modern classics such as "Les Miserables" (1980). There was also a bigger rise in Concept musicals, these being musicals that use their book and score to convey a message, with arguably the most successful of these being released in 1981, Andrew Lloyd Webber's "CATS" which to this day is one of the longest running musicals in London where it ran for 21 years. 



Pre-Contemporary - (1970-1999) Continued…

  • With the 90s came a rise in mega musicals and Disney adaptations of their films into musicals, the first of these being "Beauty and The Beast" in 1994 with "The Lion King" coming shortly afterwards in 1997. The 90s also saw a rise in jukebox musicals such as "Schoolhouse Rock Live" in 1993 and "Mamma Mia!" In 1999 which featured songs from the Swedish pop group: ABBA. ​

  • Alongside this, there was a major rise of rock musicals, with one of the most recognisable being "Rent" written by Jonathon Larson and was first performed in 1996 on Broadway. Larson broke new ground with the way he was able to mix traditional theatre troupes with a modern rock twist to it. Rent tackled themes such as HIV/AIDS which was a major topic in the 90s as well as sexuality, with many of the lead characters being bisexual or gay. However, Jonathon's career would be tragically cut short as he would die from an aortic dissertion on the eve of the show's Broadway debut; his work though would go on to win multiple awards including a pullitzer prize, with the production closing in 2008 making it one of the longest running productions on Broadway, however since it's original closing the has been revived multiple times over the years all over the world. 



Contemporary - (2000-2019)

  • With the turn of the new millenium came the rise of changing pre-existing popular media into musicals, with films such as "Ghost" which first opened in Manchester in 2011 and would go on it's West End tour later that year, with it then being on Broadway another year later. With the film being a classic in it's own right, songs such as "With You" only added to it's popularity with that song in particular becoming a regular choice in auditions for those going into creative arts related education and industries. ​

  • However it was not just films that would be adapted, musicians would have jukebox musicals made detailing their lives such as in 2005 when Ron Melcrose would create "Jersey Boys" which told the story of the 1960s rock n' roll group Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons. Another jukebox musical from this era is "We Will Rock You" from 2002, the musical was written by the pop star Elton John and it uses 24 songs by the legendary band Queen as part of the play's story. 



Contemporary - (2000-2019) Continued…

  • In 2015, a historical musical would be debuted on Broadway which would take modern musical theatre by storm. "Hamilton" was written by Lin-Manuel Miranda and told the story of Alexander Hamilton through songs that were a mixture of R&B, Soul, Pop, hip hop as well as more traditional show ballads. From the success of Hamilton, Lin-Manuel Miranda has become recognised as one of the greatest and most influential creators of the last decade, with others shows of his such as "In The Heights" also becoming incredibly popular as a result; the way in which he encooperated genres like R&B and hip hop was something had not been seen previously. ​

  • The success of Hamilton saw the rise of other historical shows such as "SIX" which was first performed in 2017, included the story of the wives of King Henry VII. This musical also used a variety of songs from different genres in order to tell it's story. 



Current - (2020-present)

  • The Broadway of the current decade is as diverse in its types of musicals as its ever been. Many of the musicals are based on already existing media such as "Back To The Future" which was released in 2022 but is based on the 1985 film that is to this day a pop culture phenomenon. There are also those musicals such as "Book Of Mormon", "Wicked" and "The Lion King" that are incredibly popular and successful and have been running for many years as a result. ​

  • There are also multiple shows by big name creators such as "Bad Cinderella" which is the latest show by Andrew Lloyd Webber as well as revivals of great musicals such as Stephen Sondheim, an incredibly famous american composer who's plays are credited with changing the face of musical theatre. One of his most famous musicals: "Sweeney Todd" was revived in late 2022 and is currently on Broadway still in 2023. ​

  • However, there are also new musicals that are being showns such as "Shucked" which is a musical that has elements of the country genre of music. The musical was written by two successful song writers, Brandy Clark who has done work for musicians such as Sheryl Crow and Shane McAnally who produced Kasey Musgrave's debut album. 



References



Style/genre

  • Book Musicals - The work is devised so that the musical numbers seem to arise naturally out of the action. They serve to develop the characters and carry the story forwards. - Rodgers and Hammerstein II: Oklahoma! (1943), The King and I (1951) - Jerome Robbins: West Side Story (1957), Fiddler On The Roof (1964)​

  • Revue Musicals – A multi-act show that combines multiple elements of the performing arts: music, dance and sketches. - George White: George White's Scandals (1910-1939) - Florenz Ziegfeld: Ziegfeld Follies (1907-1931)​

  • Jukebox Musicals - Previously released songs linked by a slender plot. - Catherine Johnson: Mamma Mia! (1999) - Ben Elton: We Will Rock You (2002)​

  • Film Musicals - A film genre in which songs are interwoven into the story and is often accompanied by dance. - George Gershwin: An American In Paris (1951) - L. Frank Baum: The Wizard Of Oz (1939)​

  • Concept Musicals - Based more on an idea than a story, with songs that tend to comment on the action rather than carrying it forwards – Stephen Sondheim: Company (1970) - Bob Fosse: Chicago (1975)



Style/genre - continued…

  • Pop/rock musicals – A musical which incorporates rock/pop music – Jonathon Larson: Rent (1996) - Ragni and Rado: Hair (1968) ​

  • Disney Musicals - A musical that has been adapted from a Walt Disney movie – Roger Allers & Irene Mecchi: The Lion King (1997) - Linda Woolverton: Beauty and the Beast (1993) ​

  • Sung through Musicals - A musical in which the entire story is told through song, lyrics and music replace all dialogue. - Andrew Lloyd Webber: Joseph and The Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat (1968), Cats (1981) - Claude-Michel Schönberg: Les Misérables (1980). 



Key Features of Musicals

Musicals set out to entertain through a combination of: ​

  • Catchy music in a popular style​

  • Solo songs, duets, choruses and ensembles​

  • Orchestra or band accompaniment​

  • Spoken dialogue.​

  • Dance sequences, stage spectacles and magnificent costumes​

  • These are all held together by the plot/theme.



Key Features of Musicals Continued…

Most Musicals have: ​

  • Libretto - the overall text including the spoken and sung parts.​

  • Lyrics - the words to the songs​

  • Most songs are either:​

  • Action songs, which move the plot forward or​

  • Character songs, which enable a character to express their feelings.​

  • Within these two formats, different song types can be found including:



Key Features of Musicals Continued…

  • Ballads, which are usually slow, romantic, and reflective.​

  • Comedy songs, which are funny, so the lyrics are very important.​

  • Production numbers, which involve the full company and are used to show major changes in location or plot, and often open and close acts.​

  • Rhythm songs are driven by energetic rhythm patterns.​

  • Charm Song let a character beguile an audience.​

  • Musical Scenes - seamlessly blend dialogue and song, usually with two or more characters. ​

  •  A patter song - very fast song with quickly sung lyrics that are more staccato in nature.​

  • Torch Song - sentimental love song.​

  • Although most musicals use dialogue some are through-composed. There is little or no dialogue, nearly everything is sung.



Examples of Musical Theatre Songs

  • Action songs: "The Other Side" from The Greatest Showman​

  • Character songs: "With You" from Ghost The Musical ​

  • Ballads: "One Song Glory" from Rent ​

  • Comedy songs: "Hasa Diga Eebowai" from The Book Of Mormon​

  • Production numbers: "Tradition" from Fiddler On The Roof​

  • Rhythm songs: "Anything Goes" from Anything Goes 



Examples of Musical Theatre Songs Continued…

  • Patter songs: "Getting Married Today" from Company ​

  • Entire musical scenes: "Suspend My Disbelief/I Had a Life" from Ghost The Musical ​

  • Stand-alone songs: "Luck Be a Lady" from Guys and Dolls ​

  • Charm: "I Feel Pretty" from West Side Story​

  • Torch: "Do You Love Me?" From Fiddler On The Roof



Examples Of How Dance is Used in Musical Theatre

  • Replacing Dialogue: "Prologue" from West Side Story​

  • Establishing an atmosphere: "All That Jazz" from Chicago​

  • Create a spectacle: "Anything Goes" from Anything Goes ​

  • Progress the plot: "Stick To The Status Quo" from High School Musical​

  • Character development/understanding character: "Dream Ballet" from Oklahoma!



Rock Of Ages (2005) 

Act 1 

Rock of ages follows the story of Drew Boley who works in a bar called the Bourbon Room on the sunset strip in 1987. He falls in love with a girl called Sherie who comes to work in the bar as a waitress. Due to a renovation project of the sunset strip, Dennis Dupree (the bar’s manager) learns that part of that project is to get rid of the Bourbon Room and devises a plan to get rockstar Stacee Jaxx and his band Arsenal to have their final show at the Bourbon Room to generate a massive amount of money for the venue. Drew and Sherrie begin developing feelings for each other and Drew auditions for a chance to open for Arsenal on their final show which he later gets, he and Sherrie then have a picnic together, but Drew gets nervous and ruins the atmosphere before either can confess their feelings for each other. 

Later, Stacee arrives at the bourbon room and Sherrie and him immediately start flirting and before long they go to have sex in the men’s bathroom while Drew is opening for Arsenal. When Stacee returns, he tells Dennis to fire Sherrie, however his guitarist knocks him out after hearing what Stacee did. Drew is then approached by a record producer who offers him a contract to take over from Stacee Jaxx which he agrees to. An upset Sherrie tries to talk to Drew however he turns her away after seeing what she did with Stacee; now without a job Sherrie turns to working at the nearby Venus Club as a stripper. 


Act 2 

The demolition of the strip begins, all while Drew is making his record producer upset with his rock n’ roll image and instead try to make him rebrand as a part of a hip hop band. Drew and Sherrie see each other and both confess their feelings for one another. Later Stacee arrives to the Venus Club drunk and pays Sherrie to perform for him, midway through they have an argument, however Drew would walk in on them both in an alluding position and storms out. 

One of the men who are carrying out the demolition are convinced against it all while Dennis and his co-manager Lonny confess their love for one another. A while later, it is decided that the Bourbon Room’s demolition will not go ahead, Sherrie also quits her job at the Venus Club after the incident with Drew and Stacee. 

Drew, who is now a pizza delivery driver, is upset at how his life turned all while Sherrie is taking a midnight train away; Lonny soon arrives and breaks the fourth wall, telling Drew how it is up to him to get the girl and win Sherrie back. He then travels to the train station and catches Sherrie before she gets on the train, they then both realise that they still love each other and they make up. 

In the epilogue, Stacee Jaxx has fled to Uruguay after being charged with Statutory rape, the city planner Regina is now the new mayor and the Bourbon Room is still standing now being in the hands of Lonny after Dennis dies. Sherrie and Drew moved away to start a family and we finally hear from Lonny who talks about how our lives may not always end up as we dreamed but they are always just as good. 



Who Created Rock Of Ages?

Chris D’Arienzo 

Chris D’Arienzo was born on the 14th of April 1972. He is an American writer and actor who is best known for films such as the 1996 festive comedy “Jingle All The Way”. He was also the writer of “Rock Of Ages” and even went on to be nominated for a Tony Award for it in 2009, he also played a hand in the creation of adapting the musical into a movie in 2012. 


Kristin Hanggi 

Kristin Hanggi is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. She is best known for director the 2009 Broadway production of “Rock Of Ages. She went on to be nominated for a Tony Award for her directing of the musical and since then she has gone on to direct multiple films and television pieces. 



What is Rock of Ages?

Rock of ages is a 2005 rock musical which uses many songs from the 80s and 90s rock scene including music from Twisted Sister, Extreme and Mr. Big. 



Don’t Stop Believing 

Arguably the most famous song from this musical is the 1981 rock song by Journey. This song closes the musical and features every character from it with the two main leads: Drew and Sherrie spearheading the majority of the number with solos for all of the other main characters including Stacee Jaxx and Lonny amongst many others. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l93fkqqAtL0



We Built This City/Too Much Time On My Hands

Being a mash up of two iconic 80s songs, “We Built This City” by Starship is used early in the play to show Regina’s disdain for the strip’s redevelopment, while “Too Much Time On My Hands” by Styx is used to further the story of Dennis who has invited Stacee Jaxx to perform at the Bourbon Room. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3butybTML7g

Comments

Post a Comment