New Book Examines History And Practices Of Disney Theatrical Productions

On April 14, 1994, Disney's Beauty and the Beast opened on Broadway. Twenty- five years later the first comprehensive study of the company's history and production practices has been published. Disney Theatrical Productions: Producing Broadway Musicals the Disney Way, (Routledge 2019) finally provides the company with its own biography.

For Twenty-five years, Disney Theatrical Productions (DTP) produced large scale adaptations of Disney films on Broadway. Because of the company's position as an independent theatrical producer under the umbrella of a multi-billion dollar entertainment corporation, DTP has created a new model for producing Broadway musicals and has been instrumental in bringing more children and families to Broadway. From Beauty and the Beast in 1994, to Frozen in 2018, from sold out houses to scathing reviews, the company, now in its third decade, has played an integral role in the expansion and success of today's Broadway.

The book discusses the twenty-five year history of DTP by examining how the company first landed on Broadway and the renovation of the New Amsterdam Theatre on 42 nd Street. Then the volume provides three case studies, illuminating three specific production models that DTP has employed. The book concludes with a discussion of Disney in partnership and an analysis of the impact and implications of the company's success and failures.

Publication data:

Disney Theatrical Productions: Producing Broadway Musicals the Disney Way by Amy S. Osatinski Routledge

ISBN: 9780367086121 (paperback) 9780367075835 (hardback) | 228 pages | £29.99 (pb) £110.00 (hb)

About the author:

Amy S. Osatinski is a director, performer, scholar, teacher and designer. She is an Assistant Professor of Theatre at the University of Northern Iowa, where she teaches courses in Directing, Analysis, and Musical Theatre. Amy holds a PhD in Theatre from the University of Colorado Boulder, an MA in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Colorado Denver, and a BA in Theatre from the University of Denver.