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| 1 | |
Watch the filmed version of Chicago that is discussed in the text. Discuss what the advantages of the filmed musical have over a live performance and vice-versa. Which would you rather see? |
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| 2 | |
Irving Berlin's "As Thousands Cheer" had stories supposedly torn from recent newspaper headlines. As a group project go through a week's worth of newspapers and create your own short revue (perhaps rewriting lyrics to folk or children's songs). How successful is this format? Have your audience participate by offering criticism. |
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| 3 | |
Watch the Ziegfeld Follies of 1946 (starring Fred Astaire on a Warner Studios video). Keep track of the assorted form of entertainment offered in the film. How does each scene contribute to the overall shape of the film? Would this kind of format work for today's audiences? |
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| 4 | |
"Top Hat" starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers (with music by Irving Berlin) was made in 1935. After watching this charming farce of mistaken identity comment on the way(s) men and women interact. How does the music and dance create tension between the two characters? Would this film be a likely box-office hit today? |
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| 5 | |
Watch the 1961 filmed version of West Side Story. Note the various kinds of dance that appear in the different scenes. How do these dances reflect the kind of dancing found in 1950s America? |
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| 6 | |
There are several filmed Sondheim musicals. Pick any one of them and write a short paper discussing the "reality" of the work you saw. How does Sondheim's work reflect a post-1950s Broadway composer? |
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| 7 | |
The book discusses some serious financial problems plaguing Broadway today. On the other hand, filmed musicals are making a comeback of sorts — for example: Jesus Christ Superstar, Chicago, and Phantom of the Opera. Discuss these crises and place them in a context that relates back to the Golden Age of Broadway. Are there any significant differences between then and now? |
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| 8 | |
Trace the revitalization of Broadway, led in part, by the Disney Studios. Don't forget to include the numerous films that have now been "musicalized." What, if anything, does this imply for the future of Broadway? |
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| 9 | |
In a short paper show how the "Broadway musical" has become an international phenomenon. |
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