Broadway Bookshelf - Must Read Theater Books

Broadway Rhythm is a guide to Manhattan like nothing you've ever read. Author Dominic Symonds calls it a performance cartography, and argues that the city of New York maps its iconicity in the music of the Broadway songbook. A series of walking tours takes the reader through the landscape of Manhattan, clambering over rooftops, riding the subway, and flying over skyscrapers. Symonds argues that Broadway's songs can themselves be used as maps to better understand the city though identifiable pat...

An essential introductory textbook that provides a comprehensive and student-friendly overview of the key processes involved in developing and managing a theatre in the 21st century. It covers a complete range of topics fundamental to successful commercial and not-for-profit theatre management, from developing a mission statement to communicating with stakeholders, from marketing and promotion to fund development platforms, and from governance structures to community engagement. With over two d...

7 songs from the stage musical adapted from Victor Hugo's 1831 novel of the same name and the music from the 1996 Disney animated feature film. This collection includes vocal line arrangements with piano accompaniment for the songs: The Bells of Notre Dame * Esmeralda * Flight into Egypt * God Help the Outcasts * Hellfire * In a Place of Miracles * Made of Stone * Rest and Recreation * Someday * Top of the World * and more.

The glorious world of P.T. Barnum and the holiday movie The Greatest Showman come to life in this lavish art book. Featuring unit photography and concept art of stars Hugh Jackman, Zac Ephron, Michelle Williams, and Zendaya as well as behind-the-scenes tales of the film’s making. Lyrics to the movie musical’s showstopping tunes, by the song-writing team behind La-La Land. Foreword by Director Michael Gracey.

The complete memoirs of Neil Simon, the greatest—and most successful—American playwright of all time, the author of such iconic works as Lost in Yonkers, The Odd Couple, Biloxi Blues, and The Goodbye Girl, now with an insightful Introduction by Nathan Lane. This omnibus edition combines Neil Simon’s two memoirs, Rewrites and The Play Goes On, into one volume that spans his extraordinary five-decade career in theater, television, and film. Rewrites takes Simon through his first love, his firs...

Beyond being just fuel for the body, food carries symbolic importance used to define individuals, situations, and places, making it an ideal communication tool. In musical theater, food can be used as a shortcut to tell the audience more about a setting, character, or situation. Because everyone relates to eating, food can also be used to evoke empathy, amusement, or shock from the audience. In some cases, food is central to show’s plot. This book looks at popular musical theater shows to exami...

In late 2016, Lin-Manuel Miranda released this "mixtape" album of 23 tracks from the score to the mega-hit, Tony Award-winning Broadway sensation Hamilton as performed by several recording artists. This songbook features piano, voice and guitar arrangements for 22 of these songs: Dear Theodosia (Regina Spektor feat. Ben Folds) * Helpless (Ashanti feat. Ja Rule) * History Has Its Eyes on You (John Legend) * It's Quiet Uptown (Kelly Clarkson) * My Shot (The Roots) * Satisfied (Sia feat. Miguel & ...

The official behind-the-scenes book of the new hit musical. A letter that was never meant to be seen, a lie that was never meant to be told, a life he never dreamed he could have. Evan Hansen is about to get the one thing he's always wanted: a chance to finally fit in. Both deeply personal and profoundly contemporary, DEAR EVAN HANSEN is a new American musical about life and the way we live it. The book-produced by Melcher Media, the team behind Hamilton, Wicked, Rent, and many more-tells...

"Do You Mind If I Smoke?" tells the story of Fenella Fielding's remarkable 65-year career in theatre, radio, TV and film. Best known for her 1960s film appearances in classic comedies such as "Carry On Screaming", "Doctor in Clover" and "Carry On Regardless", Fielding's sublime talents also brought her success in serious roles on the stage, including title roles in "Hedda Gabler" and "Colette". Spiced with star-studded anecdotes and personalized with moving stories about innocence and experienc...

In a career spanning six decades, Agnes Moorehead (1900-1974) was perhaps unique among 20th-century American actresses in making her name in four entertainment media--radio, theater, film and television--after age 40. Focusing on 25 of her most representative performances, this retrospective analyzes her work on radio serials like Mayor of the Town (1942-1949) and Suspense (1942-1962), her stage productions of Don Juan in Hell and Gigi, her television appearances on Bewitched and The Twilight Z...

The list of Nicholas Hytner's accomplishments is long and distinguished: as Artistic Director of London's National Theatre from 2003-2015, he directed and produced a great number of their most popular and memorable plays and musicals, many of which have come to Broadway: Carousel, Richard Bean's One Man, Two Guvnors, David Hare's Stuff Happens among them. He directed both the London and Broadway productions of Miss Saigon, each of which ran for ten years. He directed Alan Bennett's The Madness ...

Ever wondered why actors don’t wear green onstage? Or never wish each other “good luck”? Or avoid whistling in the dressing room? Or refuse to mention a certain Shakespeare play by name? “BREAK A LEG!” A TREASURY OF THEATRE TRADITIONS AND SUPERSTITIONS is a fascinating compendium of facts and fancies about theatre life, exploring the origin of the colorful traditions and superstitions that are as vital a part of theatre as the plays onstage. Includes entries on: Cats, Candles & Curtains • Peaco...

The Lion King debuted July 8, 1997, at the Orpheum Theatre in Minneapolis, and was an instant success before premiering at the New Amsterdam Theatre on November 13, 1997. It is Broadway's highest grossing production of all time, having grossed more than $1 billion. The show won six 1998 Tony Awards, including Best Musical and Best Direction of a Musical, making Julie Taymor the first woman in theatrical history bestowed with the honor. The Lion King has also earned more than 70 major arts award...

Drawing on his own life and career and the rich lore of The Lion King, Alton Fitzgerald White, Broadway's longest running "King," delivers his message of service -- taking responsibility for and deriving happiness from commonplace achievements -- as a philosophy that anyone can get through each day with satisfaction, pride and a sense of accomplishment. If you've ever wondered how an actor can perform the same role hundreds of times without burning out, in White's book you'll meet someone who ...

This amazing new collection features over 600 Broadway songs arranged with melody, lyrics and chords for C instruments. Definitely a must-own resource for any gigging or auditioning musician or actor! Includes: All at Once You Love Her * All I Ask of You * Alone in the Universe * Always Look on the Bright Side of Life * And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going * Another Op'nin', Another Show * Any Dream Will Do * Anything Goes * Aquarius * Be Our Guest * Bess, You Is My Woman * Big Spender * Body and...

Biography of lyricist, bookwriter, librettist John Treville Latouche (Cabin in the Sky, Beggar's Holiday, The Golden Apple, Candide ). The book draws widely on archival materials such as Latouche's diaries and the papers of Bernstein, Ellington, Moore, Moross, and many others, to tell for the first time, the story of this fascinating man and his work. 592 pages.

Eight monologues for male and female performers cover major events – such as the Wolfenden Report of 1957, the HIV/AIDS crisis, and the debate over the age of consent – through deeply affecting and personal rites-of-passage stories. Commissioned to mark the anniversary of the 1967 Sexual Offences Act and broadcast on BBC Four and BBC America. They were also staged at The Old Vic in London. The Man on the Platform by Mark Gatiss, The Perfect Gentleman by Jackie Clune, Safest Spot in Town by Keit...

A chronological reprinting of one of the most important comic strips of the 20th Century. Annie is a cultural icon--in both her red-headed, blank-eyed appearance, and as an embodiment of American individuality, spunk, and self-reliance. Even those who don't know strip are keenly aware of the plucky orphan, her loveable dog Sandy, and her adoptive benefactor, "Daddy" Warbucks, through the Broadway play, the hit movie, and the song "Tomorrow," made famous by both. What would you do if you foun...

In Arlen and Harburg's Over the Rainbow, author Walter Frisch traces the history of this song from its inception during the development of The Wizard of Oz's screenplay, to its various reinterpretations over the course of the twentieth century. Through analysis of the song's music and lyrics, this Oxford Keynotes volume provides a close reading of the piece while examining the evolution of its meaning as it traversed widely varying cultural contexts. From its adoption as a jazz standard by ge...

Through detailed case studies of canonical plays by Shakespeare, Jonson, Kyd and Heywood ... what it felt like to be part of performances in English theatre and appreciate the key role theatregoers played in the life of early modern drama ... how theatregoers were altered by drama's affective encounters ... how they were undeniable influences upon those encounters. 246 pages.

Includes new introduction by Mark Fisher. Making its New York City debut at 59E59 October 2017. 48 pages. Paperback published previously, including in July 2015.

The first book on Carousel's history and impact. Presents new archival materials on the creation of the show.

Chekhov's play adapted by Simon Stephens (The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time), to play the Lyric Hammersmith, London in October 2017. 128 pages.

After opening in a small Off-Broadway theater, Rent , a modern adaptation of Puccini's La Boheme , quickly became a worldwide phenomenon with a more zealous and devoted fan base than had any musical in history. Rent FAQ includes biographical info on the musical's brilliant creator, Jonathan Larson, who tragically passed away at age 35 the night before the show began preview performances. Other chapters focus on the creative team and original cast; the development of the script and score from ea...

Chronicle of the commercially unsuccessful British musical of the last half a century, up to 2016. Presents a rolling panorama of the good, the bad and the ugly, reassessing their place in theatrical history. Wright reveals a consistent striving at invention, with subjects including the electric chair, the Holocaust, the Virgin Mary, social inequality and Trade Unionism, sexual problems and murder, as well as biographical treatments of Hollywood stars, French painters, tragic novelists, royalty...

Tells the story of Arthur Miller's time in China directing Death of a Salesman at the Beijing People's Theatre, with Chinese actors. Second edition is given a contemporary context as the production and process is investigated against the backdrop of twenty-first century China and its theatre, through a new introduction by Claire Conceison, Professor of Theatre Studies at Duke University. Photographs by Inge Morath. 264 pages.

James Graham's play about British politics currently running in a world premiere production at the West End's Noel Coward Theatre, starring Martin Freeman and Sarah Lancashire. 128 pages.

Biography of the founder of La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club and important figure in the history of American avant-garde theater and performance art, Ellen Stewart (1919–2011). Richly illustrated, including posters and photographs of early productions and other rarely-seen photos, and featuring interviews with a wide range of now-famous La MaMa alums ... a book for theater aficionados and anyone interested in the history of Off-Off-Broadway, the cultural history of New York City, or visual cul...

Foreword by her sister, Idina Menzel. " the story of one younger sister growing up in the shadow of a larger-than-life older sister—looking up to her, wondering how they were alike and how they were different and, ultimately, learning how to live her own life and speak in her own voice on her own terms." Audiobook read by the author.

Biography of Al Hirschfeld, the caricaturist of Broadway. From interviews with the artist himself, his friends and wives, celebrity subjects, agent, daughter, and more; with access to personal correspondence, journals, home movies, and scrapbooks.

Spanning nine decades and showcasing the most memorable songs, dazzling dancing, and brightest stars ever to grace the silver screen, Must-See Musicals is the guide to the greatest musicals of all time from the most trusted authority on film-Turner Classic Movies. Movie musicals have been a part of pop culture since films began to talk nine decades ago with the premiere of The Jazz Singer in the fall of 1927. Since then, musicals have sung and danced over a vast amount of territory. In their ...

Al Hirschfeld knew everybody and drew everybody. Beginning in the 1920s, he caricatured Hollywood, politics, and notably the theater: Broadway belonged to Hirschfeld. His distinctive drawings appeared in The New York Times and other publications for more than seventy-five years. He lived in Paris, Moscow, and Bali, and in a pink New York townhouse on a star-studded block where his closest pals?S. J. Perelman, Brooks Atkinson, Carol Channing, Gloria Vanderbilt, Elia Kazan, William Saroyan, Marle...

Features essays using each theater experience (one per year, from 1960 to 2010) to provide an insight into the theater and theatre-going at a particular time. 296 pages.

By book author and Broadway dancer Tim Federle. Features 50 tips and anecdotes, with chapters such as "Let Someone Else Take a Bow," "Dance Like Everyone's Watching," and "Save the Drama for the Stage."

Rick Elice, author of Jersey Boys, Addams Family, and Peter and the Starcatcher for Broadway, has penned a heartbreaking memoir of his 34 years with the inimitable Roger Rees. Some may recognize Roger as Nicholas Nickleby and others will know him as Kirstie Alley's boyfriend on Cheers. When he died of brain cancer in 2015, Broadway dimmed all the lights in his honor -- a true stage legend. Pulled straight from Rick's enormous and broken heart, Finding Roger will touch everyone who reads it. It'...

Based on a true story that stunned the world, and inspired by Giacomo Puccini's opera Madama Butterfly, M. Butterfly was an immediate sensation when it premiered in 1988. It opens in the cramped prison cell where diplomat Rene Gallimard is being held captive by the French government—and by his own illusions. He recalls a time when Song Liling, the beautiful Chinese diva, touched him with a love as vivid, as seductive—and as elusive—as a butterfly. How could he have known that his true love w...

Before Tim Federle became a bestselling author and a Broadway playwright, he worked as a back-up dancer at the Super Bowl, a polar bear at Radio City, and a card-carrying chorus boy on Broadway. Life is Life a Musical features 50 tips learned backstage, onstage, and in between gigs, with chapters such as "Dance Like Everyone's Watching" and "Save the Drama for the Stage." This charming and clever guide will appeal to all ages and inspire readers to step into the lead role of their own life, eve...

From Gershwin and Rodgers & Hammerstein to Stephen Schwartz and Stephen Sondheim, 100 timeless hits from the Great White Way are showcased in this book of classics in arrangements for piano, voice and guitar.

Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart are one of the defining duos of musical theater, contributing dozens of classic songs to the Great American Songbook and working together on over 40 shows before Hart's death. With hit after hit on both Broadway and the West End, they produced many of the celebrated songs of the '20s and '30s--such as "Manhattan," "The Lady is a Tramp," and "Bewitched"--that remain popular favorites with great cultural resonance today. Yet the early years of these iconic collabor...

When mixing a live show, for the first time or hundredth time, there are countless things running through your mind, foremost- this is live and you have to get it right!Whether you are working on Broadway, in a regional theatre or on the school production, having an understanding of the equipment, set up, and how sound behaves is crucial to the success of your show's performance.In this guide to live sound mixing for theatre, Shannon Slaton shares his expert knowledge and proven, effective tech...

The Woods are just Trees. The Trees are just Wood.’ – All together In 1987, Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine combined several classic fairy tales including Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, and Jack and the Beanstalk to create Into the Woods. Funny and heartfelt, this musical explores what it might mean to act responsibly in society, both as a parent and as a child. Situating the work within Sondheim’s oeuvre and the Broadway canon, Olaf Jubin first offers a detailed reading of the show...

A review of the illustrious career of costume designer William Ivey Long and an analysis of his work. Illustrations of his sketches, fabric swatches, and costume designs; discussion of the productions brought to life by his award-winning costumes.

Introduce the splendor of Broadway music to your children with the Broadway Baby series! Now you can share and enjoy Rodgers and Hammerstein’s classic Do Re Mi from The Sound of Music with your children in this gorgeously illustrated book. The first title in the series, Broadway Baby: The Sound of Music, Do Re Meâ?? pairs the famous lyrics with beautiful and sweet illustrations that help bring the classic songs to life. Kids will find it super easy to read -- or sing -- along to this clas...

In 1943, a wounded soldier aided by a cane limped into the Stage Door Canteen, the American Theatre Wing's fabled New York club created to entertain the Allied forces. Two hours later, he was said to have left with a spring in his step and without the cane. This "miracle" is recounted in the lavish new book, The American Theatre Wing, an Oral History: 100 Years, 100 Voices, 100 Million Miracles . The other 999,999 miracles are more commonplace, if no less remarkable, told by the impassioned art...

Twenty-First Century Musicals stakes a place for the musical in today’s cinematic landscape, taking a look at leading contemporary shows from their stage origins to their big-screen adaptations. Each chapter offers a new perspective on a single musical, challenging populist narratives and exploring underlying narratives and sub-texts in depth. Themes of national identity; race, class and gender; the ‘voice’ and ‘singing live’ on film; authenticity; camp sensibilities; and the celebration of fai...

By veteran general manager Peter Bogyo. Glimpse into the world of theatrical general management. Laced with humorous insights and personal anecdotes. Examines actual production and operating budgets for a Broadway show and offers analysis of real contracts. Also: How to get started as a general manager; Negotiating contracts; How the producing entity functions; Programming the box office; The issues related to hiring employees; Binding insurance; Financial overview; Maintaining the run of a sho...

Are you an avid theatre buff who can name all of Shakespeare’s plays?in chronological order?and reel off the precise number of performances for each of Broadway’s longest-running shows? Or do you see a play or a musical only now and then as a special treat? Either way, You’re On! will tease your brain and tickle your memory. Casual theater-goers and seasoned thespians alike will enjoy the challenge?and maybe learn a few little-known facts about their favorite shows and stars. Do you know wh...

Includes biographical info on the Jonathan Larson; other chapters focus on the creative team and original cast, the development of the script and score from early drafts and workshop performances to the final version, the movie version, tours, and more. "Rent Cultural Literacy" is a guide to all the titles, real people, and locations referenced in the show; another chapter provides clues to the characters and tips for anyone thinking about auditioning for the musical, or putting on a production...

This is the first publication on the plays of New York–based experimental theater director and playwright Richard Maxwell (born 1967) and his company New York City Players. His plays have been commissioned by The Wexner Center, Columbus; The Walker Art Center, Minneapolis; Performance Space 122, The Kitchen and Soho Rep in New York; and The Barbican Centre, London. The book captures the experience of actually watching the plays by way of screen-grabs and captions, and in doing so documents near...

"Mrs. Robinson, you're trying to seduce me. Aren't you?" These famous lines from The Graduate (1967) would forever link Anne Bancroft (1931–2005) to the groundbreaking film and confirm her status as a movie icon. Along with her portrayal of Annie Sullivan in the stage and film drama The Miracle Worker, this role was a highlight of a career that spanned a half-century and brought Bancroft an Oscar, two Tonys, and two Emmy awards. In the first biography to cover the entire scope of Bancroft's ...