• 87: The Golden Age of Musical Theatre; Or, You Gotta Have Hart - and Rodgers (Classic)

  • Aug 27 2024
  • Length: 56 mins
  • Podcast

87: The Golden Age of Musical Theatre; Or, You Gotta Have Hart - and Rodgers (Classic)

  • Summary

  • This past week, on August 23rd, the world (A.K.A. musical theater nerds) recognized the anniversary of the passing of Oscar Hammerstein II, one of Broadway's most renowned contributors. So to honor Mr. Hammerstein in our own, special ThWAT way, here's Rob's episode all about the age in which Hammerstein ruled supreme: the Golden Age of Musical Theater. Enjoy!

    ~~~

    Long before the barricades of Les Mis arose, before Adele Dazeem defied gravity, and before Mr. Alexander Hamilton took his shot, musical theatre in America had already emerged from one of the most formative and productive periods in theatre history. It only lasted 21 years, but those years gave the public such an expansive slate of shows and groundbreaking performances that it would take a professional historian to summarize in a single podcast episode. Lucky for you, one of our hosts has a career teaching and lecturing about the history of musical theatre!

    Penn State's very own Assistant Professor of Musical Theatre, Mr. Rob W. Schneider, teaches Ray all about the Golden Age of American Musical Theater which spanned from 1943 to 1964; how Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Oklahoma pushed the musical comedy into brand new territory; which musical accomplished the rare feat of winning the 1950 Pulitzer Prize for Drama; why Cole Porter had to be on his game when writing for Ethel; Rex Harrison’s backstage drama; and whether the current state of musical theatre qualifies as a “second” Golden Age.

    If you like what we’re doing, please support us on Patreon, or you can subscribe to our bonus content on Apple Podcasts. And we’d love to find even more listeners, so if you have time, please leave us a rating or review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. And if you have any other thoughts or feedback you’d like to share with us, we’d love to hear from you - feel free to email us or send us a message on social media.

    TEAM

    Ray Hebel

    Robert W. Schneider

    Mark Schroeder

    Billy Recce

    Daniel Schwartzberg

    Gabe Crawford

    Natalie DeSavia

    EPISODE CLIPS

    My Fair Lady “Rehearsal” 1/29/60

    Fugue for Tinhorns - Guys and Dolls (1955)

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