Broadway Musical Theater: Old and New Histories Side-by-Side (Music 193) Professor Carol J.

Oja Spring Semester 2014, Wednesdays, 12-2

(Version of January 22, 2014)

Professor Oja: coja@fas.harvard.edu Office hours: Wednesdays, 2:30-4:00; sign up at http://goo.gl/oIf0 Monica Hershberger, Teaching Fellow: mhershberger@fas.harvard.edu Office hours: Thursdays, 3:00-4:00 Buckminsters (located in LISE) This seminar is tied to the campus residency of composer Jason Robert Brown, offering a one-time opportunity to work with a major Broadway artist. Brown will be Blodgett Artist-in-Residence during spring semester 2014, when he will make a number of visits to Harvard (and this course), together with presenting a concert at Oberon on March 27th. The seminar will also explore a new production at A.R.T. of Witness Uganda by Matt Gould and Griffin Matthews. While the overall focus of the class is on recent Broadway musicals, we will also be exploring classic shows that continue to resonate with todays creative artists and audiences. Class guests include playwright Alfred Uhry, director Bartlett Sher, playwright Marsha Norman, activist-artists Matt Gould and Griffin Matthews, and music-director Kurt Crowley (07). These visits take place in collaboration with Tom Lee, Director of Learning from Performers at Harvards Office for the Arts. Information about guests will be updated on the class website as arrangements are finalized. The goal of the seminar is to fuse scholarship with performance and creative activity. The course is intended for an interdisciplinary group of students, including music concentrators, undergraduates with an interest in musical theater, graduate students, and other qualified students. Reading music is desirable but not required. Diverse backgrounds will strengthen the classroom experience. This course is cross-listed with Dramatic Arts. Performances Our class is linked to a number of performances, both on campus and on Broadway. Be sure to put these dates on your calendar! -- February 18, 7:30pm: Witness Uganda at A.R.T. -- March 27, 8:00pm: Concert by Jason Robert Brown, Oberon Theatre -- April 10-13: Jason Robert Browns Songs for a New World, Student production at Adams Pool Theatre -- Note that The Bridges of Madison County is in previews on Broadway until February 20th, when its official opening takes place. If you have an opportunity to
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see the showespecially before we discuss it in class on February 26 and March 6please do so! Materials to Purchase Jason Robert Brown, The Last Five Years: The Complete Books and Lyrics of the Musical (Montclair, NJ: Applause Theatre& Cinema Books, 2011). Lin-Manuel Miranda and Quiara Alegria Hudes, In the Heights: The Complete Book and Lyrics of the Broadway Musical (Milwaukee, WI: Applause Theatre & Cinema Books, 2013). Robert James Waller, The Bridges of Madison County (New York: Warner Books, 1992). Course Requirements Reading and Listening Students are expected to keep up with the weekly reading and listening. Books, scores, and CDs are on reserve in Loeb Music Library, and many materials are available on the web. Other Assignments 1) Weekly response papers (250-500 words). Due Mondays at 5pm. Post in Dropbox on class website. 2) Class discussion-leading. Each student will lead discussion for one segment of class usually 15-20 minutes. In preparation for your week, contact Professor Oja by Friday (before class) to propose the focus of discussion. Submit draft questions to her by Sunday (before class) 3) Interviewing class guests, in-class reports, and/or in-class performances. These opportunities for participation will be discussed in class, and they will emerge as the seminar takes shape. 4) Prospectus for your final project, ~2 pages plus bibliography. Due March 5. 5) Journal of social media and critical reception. Throughout the semester, keep a steady eye on promotion, critical responses, and social media coverage for the shows we are studying. Try to check these sources weekly. Save copies of links, and write field notes, responding to what you read and hear. Length is not the goal; rather, aim for incisive commentary and remember that regular viewing over time is crucial. Due April 16th, introduced by a one-page (double-spaced) synthesis of your findings. 6) Final paper or creative project. Papers (7-10 pp., double spaced) may be analytical, historical, ethnographic, or may draw on other approaches as relevant. Creative

projects may include writing a song, writing a book (for a musical), performing and staging a scene, etc. Cut loose and take some chances. Projects and papers may be done collaboratively with other course members, as long as the individual contributions are equal in terms of effort expended and are clearly identified. Students who want feedback for creative projects or performances from Jason Robert Brown will present in class on April 23rd; everyone else will present on April 20th. Final papers/projects are due May 7 by 5pm. They should be emailed to Monica Hershberger.

Weekly Assignments
January 29: Broadway Musicals Today Jessica Sternfeld and Elizabeth L. Wollman, After the Golden Age in The Oxford Handbook of the American Musical, edited by Raymond Knapp, Mitchell Morris, and Stacy Wolf (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011), 111-124. Paul Prece and William A. Everett, The Megamusical: The Creation, Internationalisation and Impact of a Genre in The Cambridge Companion to the Musical, Second Edition, edited by William A. Everett and Paul R. Laird (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008), 250-269. Larry Stempel, Antimusicals in Showtime: A History of the Broadway Musical Theater (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2010), 656-668. Bud Coleman, New Horizons: The Musical at the Dawn of the Twenty-First Century in The Cambridge Companion to the Musical, 284-301. February 5: Jason Robert Brown Emerges: Parade (1998) Lorne Manly, Youve Got Another chance, Broadway: Jason Robert Brown, Back in New York, With Madison County, New York Times, January 16, 2014. Jackson R. Bryer and Richard A. Davison, ed., Jason Robert Brown in The Art of the American Musical: Conversations with the Creators (New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2005), 23-49. Stacy Wolf, The 1990s-2000s: Im beautiful and Im Here in Changed for Good: A Feminist History of the Broadway Musical (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011), 167-174. Ben Brantley, Parade: George, 1915: Martyrs Requiem Invokes Justice, New York Times, December 18, 1998. Vincent Canby, Pedigree Versus Play: The Mystery of Parade, New York Times, December 27, 1998.

Steve Oney, Murder and Bigotry in the South: The Story of a Lynching in Parade, New York Times, December 13, 1998. Robin Pogrebin, Songwriting Challenge of Historic Proportions, New York Times, December 22, 1998. Listen to the entire work: Score: Jason Robert Brown, Parade: Vocal Score, Selections (Milwaukee, WI: H. Leonard Corp., 1999). Recording: Jason Robert Brown, Alfred Uhry, and Harold Prince, Parade: The Original Broadway Cast Recording (New York: RCA Victor 09026-63378-2, 1999). It is important to hear the entire show. After doing so, please focus on the following songs: How Can I Call This Home" "The Factory Girls/Come Into My Office" "My Child Will Forgive Me" "That's What He Said" "It's Hard to Speak My Heart"

February 12: Parade: Creative Process, Comparing Versions Class Guests: Jason Robert Brown and Alfred Uhry Listen to the 2007 recording of Parade, and compare it to the original version (discussed last week). Take careful notes to chart changes that were made: Jason Robert Brown, Alfred Uhry, and Harold Prince, Parade: A New Musical (London: First Night Records CASTCD 99, 2007). Draft three questions for Jason Robert Brown and Alfred Uhry. Post questions to the class wiki by Sunday at noon.

February 18 (Tuesday evening): Attend Witness Uganda at A.R.T., 7:30 pm February 19: Developing New Shows Off-Broadway: Witness Uganda Class Guests: Matt Gould and Griffin Matthews Draft 3 questions for Gould and Matthews. Post questions to the class wiki by Sunday at noon. Explore the shows website: http://witnessuganda.com Read all of the press materials located under the NEWS tab.

Watch the featured videos and listen to the music located under the MEDIA tab. Check out the COMMUNITY tab, going through the Tweets and watching the i-witness videos.

Explore ARTs Witness Uganda page: http://americanrepertorytheater.org/events/show/witness-uganda Watch Invisible Thread and Kyussa, both featured videos Will Storr, Tragedy in Uganda: Joseph Kony Massacre Survivors Tell Their Stories The Observer, January 11, 2014. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jan/12/joseph-kony-uganda-massacressurvivors-stories Barbara Streisand, Barbara Streisand Defends the Role of the Artsand Actors as Activistsin American Society and Politics in In Our Own Words: Extraordinary Speeches of the American Century, edited by Senator Robert Torricelli and Andrew Carroll (New York: Kodansha America, Inc., 1999), 407413. February 26: The Bridges of Madison County: Introductory Immersion The goals for this session are to gain a sense of the back-story to the new musical by Jason Robert Brown and to get to know music from it that is currently available on the web. Robert James Waller, The Bridges of Madison County (New York: Warner Books, 1992). Eils Lotozo, The Bridges of Madison County: By Robert James Waller, Warner, $14.95, New York Times, March 28, 1993. Caryn James, The Joy of Renouncing Love for Lifes Details: Renouncing Love, New York Times, June 4, 1995. Bernard Weinraub, Rebuilding Bridges Without Leaving the Novel Behind: Respectfully Rebuilding Bridges, New York Times, June 6, 1995. Frank J. Prial, Son of Madison County: Its not hard to find the hero in Robert James Wallers second novel, New York Times, October, 32, 1993. Jason Robert Brown Sings & Analyzes THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY, Broadway World.com, December 18, 2013. http://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Jason-Robert-Brown-Sings-Analyzes-THEBRIDGES-OF-MADISON-COUNTY-201312180 Optional viewing: Richard LaGravenese, Clint Eastwood, and Kathleen Kennedy, The Bridges of Madison County (Burbank, CA: 13772 Warner Home Video, 2000).

March 5: The Bridges of Madison County: Collaboration and Development from Creation to Production Class Guests: Jason Robert Brown, Marsha Norman, and Bartlett Sher Explore the shows website: http://bridgesofmadisoncountymusical.com Read all of the press materials located under the NEWS tab. This section includes articles from the New York Times, Playbill, BroadwayMania, etc.

Pat Cerasaro, InDepth InterView: Jason Robert Brown Talks THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY, HONEYMOOD IN VEGAS, THE LAST FIVE YEARS Movie & More, Broadway World.com, November 2, 2013. http://www.broadwayworld.com/article/InDepth-InterView-Jason-Robert-Brown-TalksBRIDGES-OF-MADISON-COUNTY-HONEYMOON-IN-VEGAS-THE-LASTFIVE-YEARS-Movie-More-20131102 Jason Robert Brown Sings & Analyzes THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY, Broadway World.com, December 18, 2013. http://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Jason-Robert-Brown-Sings-Analyzes-THEBRIDGES-OF-MADISON-COUNTY-201312180 The Bridges of Madison County Cast Previews New Jason Robert Brown Musical, Playbill. http://www.playbill.com/multimedia/video/5734/The-Bridges-of-Madison-County-CastPreviews-New-Jason-Robert-Brown-Musical March 12. Broadway Ancestors I: West Side Story Brooks Atkinson, Theatre: The Jungles of the City: West Side Story Is at Winter Garden, New York Times, September 27, 1957. David Marion Boroff, West Side Story, Dance Magazine (August 1957): 14-19. Walter Kerr, Theater: West Side Story, New York Herald Tribune, September 27, 1957. West Side Story: The Beginnings of Something Great, New York Times, October 21, 1990. Ben Brantley, Our Gangs, New York Times, March 19, 2009. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/20/theater/reviews/20west.html?_r Elizabeth A. Wells, West Side Story and the Hispanic, ECHO 2/1 (2000). View the entire work: Score: Leonard Bernstein, West Side Story: Vocal Score (New York: G. Schirmer, 1959).

Libretto: Leonard Bernstein, West Side Story: Libretto (London: Heinemann Educational, 1972). Mirisch Pictures, West Side Story: Motion Picture, Collectors Set (Santa Monica, CA: MGM Home Entertainment, 1961, 2003). Focus Listening: I Feel Pretty America Tonight Quintet Gee, Officer Krupke March 19: Spring Break March 26: The Last Five Years: Creation, Structure, Performance Ben Brantley, Theater Review: Novelist and an Actress Sharing a Leaky Boat, New York Times, March 4, 2002. David Finkle, The Last 5 Years, TheaterMania, March 4, 2002. http://www.theatermania.com/new-york-city-theater/reviews/03-2002/the-last-5years_1988.html Charles Isherwood, He Sings, She Sings: Whos Right?: The Last Five Years, a Musical at Second Stage Theater, New York Times, April 2, 2013. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/03/theater/reviews/the-last-five-years-a-musical-atsecond-stage-theater.html?pagewanted=all Jesse Green, Theater Review: Eleven Years Later, a Return to The Last Five Years, Vulture, April 2, 2013. http://www.vulture.com/2013/04/theater-review-the-last-five-years.html Jeremy D. Goodwin, Last Five Years Has Staying Power to Sing About, Boston Globe, November 21, 2013. http://www.bostonglobe.com/arts/theater-art/2013/11/21/last-five-years-arcs-joy-andsadness-song/HdqMOkq1gpZ5VfyEqJtgCJ/story.html Listen to the entire work: Score: Jason Robert Brown, The Last Five Years: The Complete Book and Lyrics of the Musical (Montclair, NJ: Applause Theatre & Cinema Books, 2011). Recording: Jason Robert Brown, The Last 5 Years (New York: 4001-2 Sh-K-Boom Records, 2002).

March 27 (Thursday), 8pm: Jason Robert Brown, Concert at Oberon April 2. Broadway Contemporaries: Lin-Manuel Mirandas In the Heights Class Guest: Kurt Crowley (07), Music Director for Touring Production of In the Heights Charles Isherwood, From the Corner Bodega, the Music of Everyday Life, New York Times, February 9, 2007. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/theater/reviews/09heights.html?_r=0 Charles Isherwood, The View From Uptown: American Dreaming to a Latin Beat, New York Times, March 10, 2008. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/10/theater/reviews/10heig.html Julio Paredes, Suenos y esperanzas de tres generaciones, El Diario La Prensa, March 9, 2008. Pat Cerasaro, Exclusive InDepth InterView: Lin-Manuel Miranda Talks BRING IT ON, MERRILY, HEIGHTS, HEMILTON & More, Broadway World.com, November 3, 2011. http://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Exclusive-InDepth-InterView-Lin-ManuelMiranda-Talks-BRING-IT-ON-HEIGHTS-HAMILTON-More-20111103 Beth Stevens, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Broadway.com, March 17, 2008. http://www.broadway.com/buzz/11248/lin-manuel-miranda/ Listen to the entire work: Score: Lin-Manuel Miranda and Quiara Alegria Hudes, In the Heights: The Complete Book and Lyrics of the Broadway Musical (Milwaukee, WI: Applause Theatre & Cinema Books, 2013). Recording: Lin-Manuel Miranda and Quiara Alegria Hudes, In the Heights: Original Broadway Cast Recording (New York: Ghostlight Records 8-4428, 2008). YouTube Clips: In the Heights http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPVO69DwEV8 96,000 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoQlqjxxMlw When Youre Home http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKKQQlQpMh4 In the Heights 2008 Tony Award Performance http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvVgm4imyj0 April 9: Broadway Ancestors II: Merrily We Roll Along Larry Stempel, Prince, Sondheim & Co. in Showtime: A History of the Broadway Musical Theater, 531-543.

Stephen Banfield, Merrily We Roll Along in Sondheims Broadway Musicals (Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1993), 311-341. Frank Rich, Stage: A New Sondheim, Merrily We Roll Along: Return to Idealism, New York Times, November 17, 1981. Jay E. Fields, Merrily We Roll Along by George Kaufman, Moss Hart, George, Stephen Sondheim, Theatre Journal 38, no. 1 (1986): 110-111. Optional Reading: Jim Lovensheimer, Stephen Sondheim and the Musical of the Outsider in The Cambridge Companion to the Musical, 205-219. Optional Reading: Skim Steve Swayne, How Sondheim Found His Sound (Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2005), 5-96. Listen to the entire work Score: Stephen Sondheim, Merrily We Roll Along, A New Musical Comedy (New York: Revelation Music Publishing Corp. & Rilting Music, 1984). Recording: Stephen Sondheim, Merrily We Roll Along: Original Broadway Cast Recording (New York: RCD1-5840 RCA Red Seal, 1986). April 16: Marketing and Reception Elizabeth Titrington Craft, Is this what it takes just to make it to Broadway?!: Marketing In the Heights in the Twenty-First Century, Studies in Musical Theatre, 5/1 (2011):49-69. Re-read article from the perspective of research methodology. Turn in journal of social media and critical reception. An announcement will be made in class about how your journals will be integrated into class. April 23: Final Session with Jason Robert Brown: Summing Up, Student Performances, Student Compositions April 30: Final Student Presentations

Course Reserves Books Banfield, Stephen. Sondheims Broadway Musicals. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1993. Loeb Music: ML410.S6872 B3 1993 Hollis: 002942983 Block, Geoffrey. Enchanted Evenings: The Broadway Musical From Show Boat to Sondheim and Lloyd Webber, Second Edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009. Loeb Music: ML 1711.8.N3 B56 2009 Hollis: 007382898 Bryer, Jackson R. and Richard A. Davison, ed. The Art of the American Musical: Conversations with the Creators. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2005. Lamont: ML1711.A77 2005 Hollis: 009785691 Everett, William A. and Paul R. Laird, ed. The Cambridge Companion to the Musical, Second Edition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008. Loeb Music: ML2054 .C35 2008 Hollis: 011529673 Kenrick, John. Musical Theatre: A History. New York: Continuum, 2008. Loeb Music: ML2054.K46 2008 Hollis: 011491367 Knapp, Raymond, Mitchell Morris, and Stacy Wolf, ed. The Oxford Handbook of the American Musical. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011. Loeb Music: ML2054.O95 2011 Hollis: 012967845 Knapp, Raymond. The American Musical and the Performance of Personal Identity. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2006. Loeb Music: ML2054.K6 2006 Hollis: 010130669 Knapp, Raymond. The American Musical and the Formation of National Identity. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2005. Loeb Music: ML1711.K6 2005 Hollis: 009518221

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Stempel, Larry. Showtime: A History of the Broadway Musical Theater. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2010. Loeb Music: ML1711.8.N3 S73 2010 Hollis: 012588789 Sternfeld, Jessica. The Megamusical. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2006. Loeb Music: ML2054.S74 2006 Hollis: 010167308 Swayne, Steve. How Sondheim Found His Sound. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2005. Loeb Music: ML410.S6872 S93 2005 Hollis: 009792531 Torricelli, Robert and Andrew Carroll, ed. In Our Own Words: Extraordinary Speeches of the American Century. New York: Kodansha America, Inc., 1999. Lamont: PS661.I53 1999 Hollis: 008229428 Waller, Robert James. The Bridges of Madison County. New York: Warner Books, 1992. Widener: WID-LC PS3573.A4347 B75 1992 Hollis: 002442118 Wolf, Stacy. Changed for Good: A Feminist History of the Broadway Musical. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011. Loeb Music: ML2054.W65 C52 2011 Hollis: 012871235 Scores Bernstein, Leonard. West Side Story: Vocal Score. New York: G. Schirmer, 1959. Loeb Music: Mus 628.40.610 Hollis: 001788019 Bernstein, Leonard. West Side Story: Libretto. London: Heinemann Educational, 1972. Lamont: ML50.B529 W4 1972x Hollis: 007520706 Brown, Jason Robert. Parade: Vocal Score, Selections. Milwaukee, WI: H. Leonard Corp., 1999. Loeb Music: Harvard Depository 789 B878 71 7P2 Hollis: 009844096

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Brown, Jason Robert. The Last Five Years: The Complete Book and Lyrics of the Musical. Montclair, NJ: Applause Theatre & Cinema Books, 2011. Widener: Harvard Depository ML50.B878 L37 2011 Hollis: 012905349 Miranda, Lin-Manuel and Quiara Alegria Hudes. In the Heights: The Complete Book and Lyrics of the Broadway Musical. Milwaukee, WI: Applause Theatre & Cinema Books, 2013. Widener: Harvard Depository ML50.H8936 I6 2013 Hollis: 013774613 Sondheim, Stephen. Merrily We Roll Along, A New Musical Comedy. New York: Revelation Music Publishing Corp. & Rilting Music, 1984. Loeb Music: Mus 812.599.621 Hollis: 000648103 Wilson, Meredith. The Music Man. New York: G.P. Putnams Sons, 1958. Widener: ALB 7759.279 Hollis: 001509786 Wilson, Meredith. The Music Man, Vocal Score. New York: Frank Music Corp., 1958. Loeb Music: Harvard Depository 789 W74 71 7M9m Hollis: 002642233 Yeston, Maury. Nine, Vocal Score, Selections. New York: Cherry Lane Music Co; Milwaukee, WI: Hal Leonard Corporation, 2003. Lamont: M1508.Y47 N54 2003 Hollis: 012651495 Yeston, Maury and Arthur Kopit. Nine: The Musical. New York: S. French, 1983. Lamont: ML50.Y48 N5 1983a Hollis: 007131899 CDs Brown, Jason Robert. A Master Class with Jason Robert Brown. Cambridge, MA: Office for the Arts, Harvard University, 2004. Lamont: Media CD CDISC LFP 2004cd J Hollis: 009728734 Brown, Jason Robert. The Last 5 Years. New York: 4001-2 Sh-K-Boom Records, 2002. Lamont: Media CD CDISC B60 71 7L3 Hollis: 012662609

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Brown, Jason Robert, Alfred Uhry, and Harold Prince. Parade: The Original Broadway Cast Recording. New York: RCA Victor 09026-63378-2, 1999. Loeb Music: CD 36517 Hollis: 012109867 Brown, Jason Robert, Alfred Uhry, and Harold Prince. Parade: A New Musical. London: First Night Records CASTCD 99, 2007. Lamont: Media CD CDISC B878 71 2#1 Hollis: 012746967 Miranda, Lin-Manuel and Quiara Alegria Hudes. In the Heights: Original Broadway Cast Recording. New York: Ghostlight Records 8-4428, 2008. Loeb Music: CD 36731 Hollis: 012179891 Sondheim, Stephen. Merrily We Roll Along: Original Broadway Cast Recording. New York: RCD1-5840 RCA Red Seal, 1986. Loeb Music: CD 23647 Hollis: 008955317 Wilson, Meredith. The Music Man: Original Broadway Cast Recording. New York: Broadway Angel ZDM 7 64663 2, 1958, 1992. Loeb Music: CD 9815 Hollis: 002723759 Yeston, Maury and Arthur Kopit. Nine: The Musical. New York: Masterworks Broadway 88697591832, 2009. Lamont: Media CD CDISC Y47 71 7N56 Hollis: 012638612 DVDs LaGravenese, Richard, Clint Eastwood, and Kathleen Kennedy. The Bridges of Madison County. Burbank, CA: 13772 Warner Home Video, 2000. Widener: Harvard Depository Hollis: 009366621 Mirisch Pictures. West Side Story: Motion Picture, Collectors Set. Santa Monica, CA: MGM Home Entertainment, 1961, 2003. Lamont: Media DVD PN1995.9.M86 W47 2003x Hollis: 009497318

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