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Chicago The Musical Analysis

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All That Jazz: Story of Chicago the Musical How many people saw Chicago at Pres? Well, the show is actually the second longest running show on Broadway at this moment. And it’s no surprise. The show has captivated the audience, with its themes of murder, and corruption. Every one loves the bad girls Roxie and Velma, and can’t help but root for them, on their journey to become hotshot vaudeville stars,from formerly committing a crime. Let us see how this glamorous baddies scored on the broadway stage. (slide) Chicago is a musical written by John Kander and Fred Ebb, with the choreography done by Bob Fosse. It is based off the 1926 play of the same name. The play was about the real life criminals Beulah May Annan, who was the inspiration for Roxie, and Belva Gaertner, the inspiration for Velma. In 1942, there was a film called Roxie Hart, on TV. The actress Gwen Verdon, who later played Roxie Hart saw this show and wanted to it to adapt it to the musical stage. After the creator of the original play died, Verdon obtained the rights to adapt it. She convinced the team of Fosse, Kander, and Ebb to make the play into the musical we know today. …show more content…

It was nominated for 11 Tonys but was overshadowed by another hit musical, A Chorus Line. It only ran for 936 performances, before it was shut down in 1977. It was later reopened as Chicago: The Musical. The show was choreographed by Ann Reinking, Fosse’s wife. She also played the role of Roxie. This new cast also included Bebe Neuwirth as Velma, and James Naughton as Billy Flynn. The revival was much better received than it’s predecessor and it won many awards, especially the Tony for Best Revival of a Musical. The new revival was so popular, it has a movie based on it. The movie has Catherine Zeta-Jones as Velma, Renee Zellweger as Roxie, and Richard Gere as Billy Flynn. The movie also won many awards, like the Academy Award for Best Picture in

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The show’s original run began in 1915 at the Princess Theater on Broadway. It moved several theaters until it’s primary closing date in 1916. There was a revival of the show in 1975, which featured an altered ending. This show ran 304 performances in its year on broadway, and another 411 shows the next year at the Piccadilly Theater. In 1991 an off broadway

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Fosse was very fortunate to not only find his passion at such a young age but also to find a fulfilling career out of it as well. Through his numerous productions, Bob Fosse helped shape modern musicals with his unique style of dance and choreography. His most renowned pieces are "Bells Are Ringing", "Big Deal", "Chicago", "Damn Yankees", "Little Me", "New Girl in Town", "The Pajama Game", "Pippin", "Redhead", and "Sweet Charity". All of these shows are considered his best because of the success that followed each one and the creativity behind the

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Abstract This research is an exploration into how ‘Jukebox musicals’ have influenced modern day musicals and how they are written. This style of musical could be seen as the most recent form of musical and its increasing success in the West End looks appears like it’s going to stay. In this essay I will be investigating into whether jukebox musicals have affected future original musicals, the audiences that watch them and the rising musical theatre writers that make new original west end productions possible.

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Give My Regards to Broadway Music brings culture to everyday life, it can be found anywhere at anytime. Music doesn’t have to actually be playing for people to hear it. The rhythm of the city is music in itself, everybody has their own unique sound and way to add into the beat of the city. Music expands in many different ways such as country music, which has it’s own unique sound. Country music can be slow with a love story, fast with a break up story to it, or it could be a moderate speed about a big purple dinosaur.

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was a worthy adaptation of the classic 1970s Broadway Musical. This adaptation is filled with beautiful visuals and set designs, fiery dance numbers, and grand music which showcase the talents of the the all-star cast. The cast includes big names such as: Stephanie Mills, Queen Latifah, Uzo Aduba, Mary J. Blige, Common, Ne-Yo, David Alan Grier, Amber Riley, Elijah Kelley, and countless others. Despite such big names being involved in the project, Shanice Williams still shines in the lead role – playing Dorothy. The actors work well together and have an honest chemistry.

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The play was called the Dreams Girls,and it was played in the Milwaukee Repertory Theater. Dream Girls play, was an absolutely amazing play that I found was interesting,and will recommend it to anyone that loves seeing plays. My reaction to the Dreams Girls was an experience of mouth dropping, shocked, and overwhelmed with all the beautiful lights flashing everywhere. Dream Girls play was based upon the story of The Supreme and Motown Records. The production was produced by Laurence Mark.

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In the famous movie “Gangs of new York”, directed by Martin Scorsese, is a movie about multiple struggles and rivalries taking place in a New York city town, called the Five Points. This movie presents a story between a boy seeking revenge against the antagonist- Bill the butcher- and a portrayal of the various gangs living in the Five Points. Gangs of New York is historically accurate in the way it interprets the New York city riots, the characterization of the gangs in The Five Points, and the hardships of the Irish immigrants.

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Rent has received a plethora of prestigious awards, honors, and achievements. The production transferred to the Nederlander Theatre on Broadway just four months after its Off-Broadway debut at the New York Theatre Workshop. Rent collected four Tony awards out of an impressive ten nominations. Rent received Tony’s for Best Musical, Best Score, Best Book, and Best Lighting Design. Beyond the Tony awards Rent was also awarded with six Drama Desk Awards, three Obie Awards, and The New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Musical.

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Wicked is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz based on a book by Winnie Holzman. The musical is told from the perspective of the witches of the Land of Oz. Wicked celebrated its tenth anniversary on Broadway on 30 October 2013. It is the 9th longest-Broadway show, surpassing Beauty and the Beast. A typical performance runs for approximately two hours and thirty minutes.

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A Chorus Line was different from any of the plays that we had seen during the semester, given that it was a musical. This is definitely what I am more accustomed to from watching my friends through the years preform this style alone essentially as well as my sister playing any Broadway musical soundtrack she could get her hands on for weeks on end. This felt so drastically different from anything else we had seen in the semester because it seemed that there was no end goal or resolution, it just ended. Sure, a handful of characters grew but a lot was left to the imagination at the end of the play. One thing that always sticks out within a musical are the songs itself.

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There were many musical elements heard throughout these pieces and it was interesting to hear how they varied in each song and suite. In Intermezzo, it began with a quieter violin solo melody creating a monophonic texture. Soon after, it became accompanied by the other violins and cellos, then the full ensemble came in creating a moderate, flowing melody at about mezzo forte and switching to a polyphonic texture. Next, there was a harp solo at forte with many crescendos and decrescendos. The full ensemble enters again raising the dynamics to forte before decrescendoing and slowing down to end with a held note and final tone.

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Introduction Roger’s and Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music is arguably one of the most well known films that many can admit to watching at least once in their lifetime. People all around the world have found this musical inspiring, as it documents growth and hope amidst the horrors of World War II. This incredibly well written film is based on the story of the Von Trapp family who escaped Austria when the Nazis invaded it during the war. Part of what made this movie so interesting on so many different accounts was the music that accompanied the vivid and exciting scenes. Without music, many could agree that our world would be a sad, quiet, dull and depressing place.

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