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Revue
A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own during its golden years from 1916 to 1932. Though most famous for their visual spectacle, revues frequently satirized contemporary figures, news or literature. Similar to the related subforms of operetta and musical theatre, the revue art form brings together music, dance and sketches to create a compelling show. In contrast to these, however, revue does not have an overarching storyline. Rather, a general theme serves as the motto for a loosely-related series of acts that alternate between solo performances and dance ensembles. Owing to high ticket prices, ribald publicity campaigns and the occasional use of prurient material, the revue was typically patronized by audience members who earned more and felt even less restricted by middle-cla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Musical Theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an integrated whole. Although musical theatre overlaps with other theatrical forms like opera and dance, it may be distinguished by the equal importance given to the music as compared with the dialogue, movement and other elements. Since the early 20th century, musical theatre stage works have generally been called, simply, musicals. Although music has been a part of dramatic presentations since ancient times, modern Western musical theatre emerged during the 19th century, with many structural elements established by the works of Gilbert and Sullivan in Britain and those of Harrigan and Hart in America. These were followed by the numerous Edwardian musical comedies and the musical theatre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eddie Cantor
Eddie Cantor (born Isidore Itzkowitz; January 31, 1892 – October 10, 1964) was an American comedian, actor, dancer, singer, songwriter, film producer, screenwriter and author. Familiar to Broadway, radio, movie, and early television audiences, this "Apostle of Pep" was regarded almost as a family member by millions because his top-rated radio shows revealed intimate stories and amusing anecdotes about his wife Ida and five daughters. Some of his hits include " Makin' Whoopee", "Ida (Sweet as Apple Cider)", "If You Knew Susie", "Ma! He's Making Eyes at Me", “ Mandy”, " My Baby Just Cares for Me”, "Margie", and "How Ya Gonna Keep 'em Down on the Farm (After They've Seen Paree)?" He also wrote a few songs, including " Merrily We Roll Along", the '' Merrie Melodies'' Warner Bros. cartoon theme. His eye-rolling song-and-dance routines eventually led to his nickname "Banjo Eyes". In 1933, artist Frederick J. Garner caricatured Cantor with large round eyes resembling the drum- ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Earl Carroll Vanities
''The Earl Carroll Vanities'' was a Broadway revue that Earl Carroll presented in the 1920s and early 1930s. Carroll and his show were sometimes controversial. Distinguishing qualities In 1923, the ''Vanities'' joined the ranks of New York’s other popular revues: ''The Greenwich Village Follies'', '' George White's Scandals'', and ''The Ziegfeld Follies''. At a time when Florenz Ziegfeld was hailed as “The Great Glorifier of the American Girl,” Carroll bragged that “the most beautiful girls in the world” passed through the stage door of his theatre. As many as 108 women were onstage in Carroll's show at one time. Critics often insinuated that Carroll's performers were provocatively dressed. Carroll frequently sublimated public scrutiny into free publicity. Though Carroll boasted of presenting larger casts than his peers, his fare was frequently regarded as somewhat unsophisticated. One critic in the ''New York Times'' described the show's comedy bits, which feature ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Greenwich Village Follies
The ''Greenwich Village Follies'' was a musical revue that played for eight seasons in New York City from 1919 to 1927. Launched by John Murray Anderson, and opening on July 15, 1919, at the newly constructed Greenwich Village Theatre near Christopher Street, the show's success has been credited in part to its timing: as a non-union production, it was unaffected by the then-current actors' strike. From downtown to uptown Though considered a pioneer in the history of Off-Broadway musicals, this annual revue actually spent very little time in its original downtown home. The first edition moved uptown soon after its opening, as did the second. By the third year, the revue simply skipped its native venue and opened at the Shubert Theatre. Typically, after a run in New York, an adapted version of the show toured the country. Rival revues To the dismay of rival impresario Florenz Ziegfeld, Anderson changed the last word of his title from “Nights” to “Follies.” Ziegfeld d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Passing Show
''The Passing Show'' was a musical revue in three acts, billed as a "topical extravaganza", with a book and lyrics by Sydney Rosenfeld and music by Ludwig Engländer and various other composers. It featured spoofs of theatrical productions of the past season. The show was presented in 1894 by George Lederer at the Casino Theatre. It was one of the first musical revues on Broadway and led the fashion for such productions. The Casino Theatre produced a revue each summer thereafter for several seasons. In 1912, Lee and Jacob J. Shubert began an annual series of elaborate Broadway revues using the name ''The Passing Show of 19XX'', designed to compete with the popular Ziegfeld Follies. Original 1894 version Although a few entertainments that could be called revues had already been presented by such showmen as John Brougham, ''The Passing Show'' was the first American revue to use the term, spelling it "review". Its now-familiar structure was to use a thin story line to link ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Murray Anderson
John Murray Anderson (September 20, 1886 – January 30, 1954) was a Canadian theatre director and producer, songwriter, actor, screenwriter, dancer and lighting designer, who made his career in the United States, primarily in New York City and Hollywood. He worked in almost every genre of show business, including vaudeville, Broadway, and film. He also directed plays in London. Early life and education John Murray Anderson was born in 1886 in St. John's, Newfoundland, the son of Hon. John Anderson and his wife. His brother was Hugh Abercrombie Anderson. Anderson received his early education at Bishop Feild College in St. John's. He was sent to Europe for additional studies at Edinburgh Academy in Scotland. He entered college at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland. Later, he also studied singing with Sir Charles Stanley and art with Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree in London. Career After completing studies in Europe, Anderson moved to New York City, where he became an an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Burlesque
American burlesque is a genre of variety show derived from elements of Victorian burlesque, music hall and minstrel shows. Burlesque became popular in America in the late 1860s and slowly evolved to feature ribald comedy and female nudity. By the late 1920s, the striptease element overshadowed the comedy and subjected burlesque to extensive local legislation. Burlesque gradually lost popularity beginning in the 1940s. A number of producers sought to capitalize on nostalgia for the entertainment by recreating burlesque on the stage and in Hollywood films from the 1930s to the 1960s. There has been a resurgence of interest in this format since the 1990s. Literary and theatrical origins The term "burlesque" more generally means a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
George White's Scandals
''George White's Scandals'' were a long-running string of Broadway revues produced by George White that ran from 1919–1939, modeled after the ''Ziegfeld Follies''. The "Scandals" launched the careers of many entertainers, including W. C. Fields, the Three Stooges, Ray Bolger, Helen Morgan, Ethel Merman, Ann Miller, Eleanor Powell, Bert Lahr and Rudy Vallée. Louise Brooks, Dolores Costello, Barbara Pepper, and Alice Faye got their show business start as lavishly dressed (or underdressed) chorus girls strutting to the "Scandal Walk". Much of George Gershwin's early work appeared in the 1920–24 editions of ''Scandals.'' The Black Bottom, danced by ''Ziegfeld Follies'' star Ann Pennington and Tom Patricola, touched off a national dance craze. ''George White's Scandals'' is also the name of several movies set within the ''Scandals'', all of which focus primarily on the show's acts, with a thin backstage plot stringing them all together. The best known of these was 1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Operetta
Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs, and dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, length of the work, and at face value, subject matter. Apart from its shorter length, the operetta is usually of a light and amusing character. It sometimes also includes satirical commentaries. "Operetta" is the Italian diminutive of "opera" and was used originally to describe a shorter, perhaps less ambitious work than an opera. Operetta provides an alternative to operatic performances in an accessible form targeting a different audience. Operetta became a recognizable form in the mid-19th century in France, and its popularity led to the development of many national styles of operetta. Distinctive styles emerged across countries including Austria-Hungary, Germany, England, Spain, the Philippines, Mexico, Cuba, and the United States. Through the transfer of operetta among different countries, cultural cosmo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Extravaganza
An extravaganza is a literary or musical work (often musical theatre) usually containing elements of burlesque, pantomime, music hall and parody in a spectacular production and characterized by freedom of style and structure. It sometimes also has elements of cabaret, circus, revue, variety, vaudeville and mime. ''Extravaganza'' may more broadly refer to an elaborate, spectacular, and expensive theatrical production. 19th-century British dramatist, James Planché, was known for his extravaganzas. Planché defined the genre as "the whimsical treatment of a poetical subject."Planché. ''The recollections and reflections of J.R. Planché (Somerset herald): a professional biography'' (1872), Vol. II, p. 43 The term is derived from the Italian word ''stravaganza'', meaning extravagance. See also * Spectacle *Victorian burlesque Victorian burlesque, sometimes known as travesty or extravaganza, is a genre of theatrical entertainment that was popular in Victorian England and i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sketch Comedy
Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. The form developed and became popular in vaudeville, and is used widely in variety shows, comedy talk shows, and some sitcoms and children's television series. The sketches may be improvised live by the performers, developed through improvisation before public performance, or scripted and rehearsed in advance like a play. Sketch comedians routinely differentiate their work from a "skit", maintaining that a skit is a (single) dramatized joke (or "bit") while a sketch is a comedic exploration of a concept, character, or situation. definition 3b, Merriam-Webster online. Retrieved 5/4/2019 History Sketch comedy has its origins in[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shubert Family
The Shubert family was responsible for the establishment of the Broadway district, in New York City, as the hub of the theater industry in the United States. They dominated the legitimate theater and vaudeville in the first half of the 20th century, promoting entertainment attuned to the popular taste. History The family's American history began with Duvvid Schubart (transliterated to "Shubert") and his wife Katrina (Gitel) Helwitz, who left their native town Vladislavov, Russian Empire (now Kudirkos Naumiestis, Lithuania) arriving in New York City from Hamburg, via England, on June 12, 1881 on the s/s ''Spain'' with their eight children. Two of them subsequently died. Later they settled in Syracuse, New York."Shubert Brothers" pbs.org, accessed August 29, 2009Kenrick, Joh [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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