We live in a society where moderation is frowned upon and not particularly our forte. Anything worth doing is worth overdoing and the matinee days feed right into this concept. Musical Theatre is simply amazing. It is the impossible unfolding before your eyes. A Broadway show has defied the odds to be where it is. Something this rare and special should be celebrated: like a unicorn, the Loch Ness Monster, or an accurate Fox News telecast.
So many people, so many ideas, so much money, so much hope all colliding in the same room, propelled by the energy of a live audience. The Broadway Musical is its own church of sorts, where the congregation comes together to worship creativity, self-expression, and collaboration. And on the seventh day equity day off , they all rested. Musical Misfires. Mark Robinson Writes. Mark's Books. Broadway Direct Articles. ShowTickets Articles. Playbill Articles. Dec 3. Mark Robinson. We Cannot Afford Therapy In a world where there is so much wrong and things don't go our way, the Broadway showtune offers escape, satisfaction, an emotional outlet, and a way to feel our way through our problems.
We Like Our Obsessions Manageable and Containable The world of musical theatre is small enough that we can manage our obsession with the art form. We Love to Champion the Underdog Musicals are one of the great underdogs of the performing arts world and we love to take bets on the long shot. The reality of the stage profession is that there are far more boys jobs than there are girls jobs," says Barker. It is not just in Britain where the audience may have tipped in the past in favour of women.
Matthew Hemley, senior reporter at The Stage newspaper, who has a particular interest in musical theatre, says traditionally the genre has attracted a more female audience with shows such as Mamma Mia, but the West End landscape is shifting.
He says musicals are so powerful because the stories are heightened by the music and that producers have become a lot braver and more edgy in the last few years with shows like Matilda, The Book of Mormon and The Scottsboro Boys, which opened recently at the Young Vic and tackles issues such as racism and prejudice. A while back there may have been a kind of, 'well that's for women or gay men,' but actually I think people who love theatre, love theatre and [if] they want to they'll go and see a musical or a play whether they're straight, gay or female," says Hemley.
Julian Bird, chief executive of the Society of London Theatre says the variety of musicals now available in the West End means the genre has become less typecast.
Anecdotally, ticket agents would say there are more female ticket buyers than male, according to Bird, even though men are going to the theatre as well. It would be easy to think giving these things the musical treatment might somehow water them down — but that would be missing the magic. A catchy chorus or stomping, swinging dance number enables us to bring a feeling to life in a way that just connects.
Certain lyrics and songs become firmly embedded in the nostalgia-steeped soundtrack of our lives: a ballad that perfectly encapsulates the devastation of a break-up, a barn-storming anthem that incites an exultant rush of blood and fondly recalls a personal triumph. The multi-sensory element plays a part too. Sound vibrations alone are known to stimulate mood-altering processes in our brains.
But of course, songs are designed to evoke specific feelings, and most of us find that to be powerfully rousing — which is partly why music is so popular, as University of Tulsa anthropology professor Peter Stromberg, author of Caught In Play: How Entertainment Works On You , Stanford University press , points out. If the romantic comedy and the song are emotionally powerful on their own, an author can put them together and create something that is mesmerising.
For most people, a funny song is much funnier than the same lines being read, a sad song much sadder than the lyrics would be alone, etc.
In fact, if you think about it, the lyrics of most popular songs are pretty banal.
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