Carnival, charivari, mumming plays, peasant festivals, and even early versions of the Santa Claus myth--all of these forms of entertainment influenced and shaped blackface minstrelsy in the first half of the nineteenth century. In his fascinating study Demons of Disorder, musicologist Dale Cockrell studies issues of race and class by analyzing their cultural expressions, and investigates the roots of still-remembered songs such as "Jim Crow," "Zip Coon," and "Dan Tucker." The first book on the blackface tradition written by a leading musicologist, Demons of Disorder is an important achievement in music history and culture.
Dale Cockrell
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An intimate look into theatrical lighting design and collaboration through the eyes of four-time Tony Award winner, Kevin Adams. From Texas-born set designer to self-taught Broadway lighting designer, chronicling numerous productions including his 20-year journey with Hedwig and…
Since the second half of the 19th century, live entertainment in the United States has been governed by monopolies and powerful business cartels who together through power and greed controlled who could produce, book, and present live performance and legitimate theatre, affecting…
Renowned dancer and choreographer Jack Cole (1911–1974), whose birth name was John Ewing Richter, was a one-of-a-kind artist who initiated a gripping style of theatrical jazz dance that forever vanquished the vaudeville kickline. Cole's distinctive four-decade career choreographi…
Traces the journey of Kiss Me, Kate, by Cole Porter, Sam and Bella Spewack, charting its development from concept to curtain call, a behind-the-scenes look at the artistic decisions that shaped its legacy. Through several case studies, Robbins examines how it has remained relevan…
Making Mary Poppins reveals the extraordinary true story behind the creation of one of the most beloved films of all time―and the two little-known songwriters who helped make it possible. Long before Mary Poppins danced across the rooftops of Edwardian London and into the hearts…
An analytic and critical overview of the practice, execution, and effects of orchestration in musical theatre since the time that rock music became significant in the genre. Case studies from shows such as Hair, The Phantom of the Opera, The Lion King, Wicked, and Hamilton. 128 p…
Weaves these diverse threads into a comprehensive narrative, repositioning Black, Queer, and Women artists at the heart of the story, acknowledging their long-standing contributions often overlooked. 456 pages.
Uncovers critical networks that originally theorized a middlebrow approach to culture, beginning in the literary circles of Van Wyck Brooks and Archibald MacLeish, and radiating outward to major theater and music critics including Brooks Atkinson and Olin Downes. Follows three sh…
The original cast recording of SOUND MIND, a musical about teen mental health, is available on all major streaming platforms.
Last year Ghostlight Records released the studio cast recording of the new musical Deathless, starring Jeremy Jordan, Nicolette Robinson, and more.
The studio cast album of THAT PARENTING MUSICAL is available now.
The Museum of Broadway will host a vinyl and CD signing event with THE RESCUES, the two-time Tony Award-nominated composers of THE LOST BOYS, in connection with Atlantic Records' physical release.
Concord Theatricals Recordings will release two new formats of the RAGTIME cast recording: a 4-inch collectible Tiny Vinyl pressing and a Dolby Atmos digital remix, both featuring performances by Tony Award winners Joshua Henry and Caissie Levy.
Life Jacket Theatre Company, the creator of the new musical The Gorgeous Nothings, has teamed up with Making Gay History and their podcast of the same name to release 'The Queens of Welfare Island'.
Audible will premiere Feeding Frenzy, a new play from Audible Emerging Playwright Ava Geyer.
Play Club has published Jack Kelly Bellue's English translation of Sacha Guitry's 1916 French comedy, available as a standalone paperback after first appearing in Asymptote Literary Journal.
Bob Holz will release a compilation album featuring John McLaughlin, Jean Luc Ponty, Stanley Clarke, Randy Brecker and other jazz fusion musicians.
Joy Machine Records released the original cast recording for THE TUNEABOMBER, a musical comedy about the Unabomber written and performed by John Lampe and Michael Wysong, featuring theater legend Harvey Fierstein.
The second single from THAT PARENTING MUSICAL, featuring Christopher Jackson of HAMILTON, is out now.
Concord Theatricals Recordings released “O Holy Night,” the second single from the highly-anticipated Voices of The Gilded Age: The Christmas Album, due out November 6.
401 RECORDS will release the new album by Nicolas King on CD and streaming formats.
Methuen Drama/Bloomsbury Publishing will release Power and Greed: Monopolies, Mergers, and Cartels on the American Stage by Spencer Weber Waller this week.
Kennedy Caughell, currently starring in Todrick Hall's Off-Broadway musical MIDNIGHT, has released the CD edition of her debut album JUST THE BEGINNING.
Original Broadway cast members including Alex Brightman, Sara Chase, and Ana Gasteyer will gather at the Museum of Broadway to sign copies of the SCHMIGADOON! Original Broadway Cast Recording on CD and vinyl.
A concept EP titled STONE COLD will release with cast members including Isabella Esler, Echo Picone, Lindsay Heather Pearce, Cassadee Pope, and Keaton Whittaker.
The TUNEabomber: Original Cast Recording has released its second single “The TUNEabomber,” the show's title number.
Scott Fagan released a new song from his long-lost 1971 Broadway rock opera SOON, which starred a young Richard Gere.
BORDEN: A New Musical, which explores the Lizzie Borden murders through her sister Emma's perspective, will release a concept album featuring Broadway's Katy Geraghty as Lizzie Borden.
Broadway performer Kimberly Faye Greenberg will release an interactive children's book introducing young readers ages 7–12 to vaudeville history through the stories of two characters discovering their local theater's entertainment past.
That Parenting Musical (Studio Cast Album) will be released in streaming and digital formats.
Concord Theatricals Recordings has released a new recording of “Dreamer (The Familia Version),” by composer and theatrical artist Jaime Lozano, featuring more than 100 Latine Broadway and off-Broadway performers.
You can now get an exclusive first listen of “To Be A Butterfly,” the debut single from the upcoming concept album for the new folk musical The Waiting.
This holiday season, the cast of HBO’s Emmy Award-nominated Original Drama series The Gilded Age will come together for Voices Of The Gilded Age: The Christmas Album, featuring Audra McDonald, Laura Benanti, Kelli O'Hara, and more.
AILEY Artistic Director Alicia Graf Mack announced her debut children's book INTRODUCING RHYTHM, illustrated by Justin Campbell, designed for readers ages 4–12 exploring movement, music, and self-discovery.
Based on Taylor Mac and Matt Ray’s spectacular rock opera, Bark of Millions brings the experience of the show to the page in a gorgeous two-volume box set.
Musical theatre writers Maria Isabella Andreoli and EmmaLee Kidwell released the first single from their developing folk musical THE WAITING, which explores grief and healing through the perspective of the dead.
Musical theatre writers Maria Isabella Andreoli and EmmaLee Kidwell will release “To Be A Butterfly,” the first single from the upcoming concept album for their developing folk musical The Waiting.
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