Broadway Hero
Broadway Hero
#1Broadway Hero
Posted: 10/6/09 at 7:13am
I have to do a biography, and I wanted to do it on someone who changed Broadway.
Who changed Broadway?
Phyllis Rogers Stone
Broadway Legend Joined: 9/16/07
#2re: Broadway Hero
Posted: 10/6/09 at 9:35am
Agnes De Mille
Bob Fosse
David Merrick
George and Ira Gershwin
Rodgers and Hammerstein
"A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men" - Willy Wonka
Mamie
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/26/04
#3re: Broadway Hero
Posted: 10/6/09 at 9:36am
George M. Cohan
Actually Oscar Hammerstein (the lyricist's grandfather) would be a really interesting story.
www.thebreastcancersite.com
A click for life.
mamie4 5/14/03
Updated On: 10/6/09 at 09:36 AM
A click for life.
mamie4 5/14/03
husk_charmer
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/19/06
#5re: Broadway Hero
Posted: 10/6/09 at 9:58amRodgers and Hammerstein
"They're eating her and then they're going to eat me. OH MY GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!!!!" -Troll 2
#6re: Broadway Hero
Posted: 10/6/09 at 9:59am
Some really good suggestions so far (will second the Michael Bennett one)
Also:
Stephen Sondheim
Andrew Lloyd Webber (whether for good or bad, which is a whole other argument, he certainly changed Broadway...)
Leonard Bernstein
"Are you calling me a procrastibator?" Hunter, [title of show]
"Guess who's gonna get blamed for the war in Europe?" Eugene, Brighton Beach Memoirs
#7re: Broadway Hero
Posted: 10/6/09 at 10:04amHal Prince
Sarcasm is an allergic reaction to stupid people.
#8re: Broadway Hero
Posted: 10/6/09 at 10:18am
In addition to the previous suggestions, I'd add:
Jerome Robbins
"It does me no injury for my neighbour to say there are 20 gods or no god. It neither picks my pocket, nor breaks my leg."
-- Thomas Jefferson
SweetQintheLights
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/12/05
#9re: Broadway Hero
Posted: 10/6/09 at 12:14pm
Eyedeeena Menzeel
Sorry, I had to 
"How bout a little black dress?"~hannahshule
"I have a penis, not a vagina." ~munkustrap178
#10re: Broadway Hero
Posted: 10/6/09 at 12:38pmI think Oscar Hammerstein. He started in operetta and ended up changing the entire idea of the American musical by bringing serious themes into it. Plus--he and Richard Rodgers were producers and music publishers, so they expanded the roles of writers into business people.
philly03
Broadway Legend Joined: 9/20/07
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/31/69
#15re: Broadway Hero
Posted: 10/6/09 at 1:09pmDavid Belasco. He basically shaped early American theater, and there's a lot of really interesting stuff there.
Nothing matters but knowing nothing matters. ~ Wicked
Everything in life is only for now. ~ Avenue Q
There is no future, there is no past. I live this moment as my last. ~ Rent
"He's a tramp, but I love him."
Everything in life is only for now. ~ Avenue Q
There is no future, there is no past. I live this moment as my last. ~ Rent
Ed_Mottershead
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/20/05
#16re: Broadway Hero
Posted: 10/6/09 at 3:18pm
Nice to see SOMEONE knew who David Belasco was and the influence he had. I don't think any of his plays, per se, were memorable, but his impact on scene design, lighting, the star system, and other innovations changed the way things were done.
Also consider Florenz Zielgeld, Jr. -- the musical was NEVER the same after he landed in town. And Eugene O'Neill turned the serious Broadway theatre around forever.
BroadwayEd
#17re: Broadway Hero
Posted: 10/6/09 at 3:22pmOh, don't worry, I wasn't referring to Belasco's playwriting at all.
Nothing matters but knowing nothing matters. ~ Wicked
Everything in life is only for now. ~ Avenue Q
There is no future, there is no past. I live this moment as my last. ~ Rent
"He's a tramp, but I love him."
Everything in life is only for now. ~ Avenue Q
There is no future, there is no past. I live this moment as my last. ~ Rent
#18re: Broadway Hero
Posted: 10/6/09 at 4:15pm
Stella Adler & Lee Strasberg , who revolutionized the craft of acting on the American stage by introducing and teaching the Stanislavski system, which later came to be known as the "Method".
Tennessee Williams, whose plays tackled controversial characters and subjects with a frank, unflinching realism that was made to order for the new generation of brilliant young actors (Brando, Dean, Clift, etc) trained by Adler and Strasberg in the "Method" style of acting, and embraced by cutting edge directors (Kazan, etc).
My Avatar is the amazing young singer, James Anest
#19re: Broadway Hero
Posted: 10/6/09 at 4:26pmJerome Kern who along with Oscar Hammerstein wrote SHOWBOAT, which changed forever the Broadway musical.
"Madam Rose...and her daughter...Gypsy!"
millie_dillmount
Broadway Legend Joined: 4/22/04
#20re: Broadway Hero
Posted: 10/6/09 at 4:50pm
Bob Fosse
Rodgers & Hammerstein
Jerome Robbins
Stephen Sondheim
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Kander & Ebb
"We like to snark around here. Sometimes we actually talk about theater...but we try not to let that get in our way." - dramamama611
#21re: Broadway Hero
Posted: 10/6/09 at 5:30pmSusan Boyle
kchenofan's computer is broken right now. This is her fridge. Now, you can leave a message, but say it slowly, so I can write it on a post-it note and stick it to myself.
AEA AGMA SM
Broadway Legend Joined: 8/13/09
#22re: Broadway Hero
Posted: 10/6/09 at 7:03pm
"Oh, don't worry, I wasn't referring to Belasco's playwriting at all."
Though don't forget that Belasco provided Puccini with the materials that became Madama Butterfly and La fanciulla del West (which in turn provided the Puccini estate with a lovely plagiarism suit against Andrew Lloyd Webber).
#23re: Broadway Hero
Posted: 10/6/09 at 7:16pm
Irving Berlin
Ethel Merman
Bert Williams
Cole Porter
And just because I think she's the ultimate diva:
Carol Channing
