Description
Book SynopsisDerived from the colorful traditions of vaudeville, burlesque, revue, and operetta, the musical has blossomed into America's most popular form of theater. Scott McMillin has developed a fresh aesthetic theory of this underrated art form, exploring the musical as a type of drama deserving the kind of critical and theoretical regard given to Chekhov
Trade ReviewWinner of the 2007 George Jean Nathan Award for Dramatic Criticism "A scholarly work, with good supporting bibliographic footnotes, this book merits serious study... Highly recommended."--Choice "Scott McMillin is giving musicals the respect they deserve. If you want to know how a car is constructed, you might consult a Chilton's vehicle manual. If you want to know how a pie is constructed, you might consult the Fanny Farmer Cookbook. If you want to know how a musical is constructed, you might consult The Musical as Drama by Scott McMillin. This adoring yet studious book dissects familiar musicals as if they were biology frogs and academically discusses their skeletal and muscular systems."--Eve Lichtgarn, Westside Chronicle "Rarely does a book come along that seems to elegantly summarize what has come before while taking its subject to the next level. The Musical as Drama is just such a book. ...This volume encapsulates an entire career's reflection on the nature and structure of musical theater...This well-written, lucid, and effective book should serve as a fine addition to the expanding scholarship on America's musical theater."--Elizabeth A. Wells, Notes "Staunchly defending a much-maligned genre, McMillin sets his sights high... Even if one disagrees with some of his tastes and arguments, his defense of the musicals of the last half-century is convincing and, appropriately, an entertaining one."--Heather Heckman, Screening the Past "McMillin's specific examples are at once astute and persuasive and somehow obvious (and I mean this as the highest compliment). Anyone who reads this book (and all with even a passing interest in musical theatre should) will constantly be struck with a 'Why didn't I think of that?' feeling."--Stacy Wolf, Text & Presentation
Table of ContentsList of Illustrations vii Preface ix CHAPTER ONE: Integration and Difference 1 CHAPTER TWO: The Book and the Numbers 31 CHAPTER THREE:Character and the Voice of the Musical 54 CHAPTER FOUR: The Ensemble Effect 78 CHAPTER FIVE: The Drama of Numbers 102 CHAPTER SIX: The Orchestra 126 CHAPTER SEVEN: Narration and Technology: Systems of Omniscience 149 CHAPTER EIGHT: What Kind of Drama Is This? 179 Bibliography 213 Index 221
