Gay Bisexuals In The Broadway Theatre

The Globe Theater was a theater that was built and owned by Shakespeare and the group he belonged to called the Lord Chamberlain's Men. Although it is not known exactly when the theater was built, the first record of it shows that it was built before the end of 1599. The Globe Theater was built using lumber from a theater that was not very far away. Even though the Globe Theater was built with wood from a dismantled theater, it was not the same as the previous theater. In fact the globe theater was much larger than the previous one. The theater was a great success for many years; nevertheless, it was burned down in summer of 1613 during a play of Henry VIII. During the performance something happened to a theatrical cannon to cause it to misfire

Broadway was one of the first forms of entertainment. Before there were television programs, or movies, there was Broadway. Broadway originated in New York in 1750, when actor-manager Walter Murray built a theatre company at the Theatre on Nassau Street. A musical would show about once every weekend. The shows were very male based, and would commonly show a relationship between young boys and their fathers. Women were slowly integrated into Broadway, and as society changed its point of view on women, so did theatre.

In medieval and Elizabethan England, homosexuality was not only looked down upon, but was a crime punishable by law. Found perpetrators, including the famous King Edward II, were horribly punished. Edward was killed by “the slow and painful insertion of a red, hot poker into his anus”, along with his lover, who “had his genitals cut off and burned” (Sanders). Such is the world in which a bisexual William Shakespeare lived. Though he married Anne Hathaway at the age of 18, he was rumored to have had extramarital affairs with numerous men while in London (“Shakespeare’s Sexuality”). Gay men are present in many of Shakespeare’s plays, most prominently Twelfth Night. A sailor named Antonio falls in love with a man of noble birth named

In 1951, Frank Loesser’s Guys & Dolls opened and received what were said to be “the most unanimously ecstatic set of reviews in Broadway history” (Block 200). For a show whose development included disappointing librettos from eleven different writers, this feat was truly unbelievable (Lewis 73). The unprecedented success of Guys & Dolls and its ability to remain culturally significant, as a popularly revived piece, is the product of several attributes unique to this show. The unusual writing progression that led to a truly integrated libretto in terms of the relationship of the score to the text, Loesser’s assimilation of a unified, yet distinctive style of speech into his lyrics for the

For our critiquing assignment in our Introduction to Stagecraft 1, I ventured to downtown Toronto, to a small indie theatre called, The Unit 102 Theatre. There I saw the production of MISS; written by Dora Award-nominated playwright Michael Ross Albert who wrote such works as Tough Jews, The Spadina Avenue Gang with the Storefront Theatre. The set takes place in the aftermath of a shocking accident in a boarding school classroom, the story explores the tenuous connection between a high school teacher, her fiance, and a troubled student whose lives have been irrevocably changed by tragedy caused by a miscarriage, an affair, and the fear of the consequences that are not yet revealed, and finally, murder. This is a one act showdown between three

The Broadway Theatre will discuss possible shows for the 2016-2017 season at a play selection committee meeting October 5. This is open to the public and will begin at 7:00 p.m. at the Broadway Theatre 216 East Broadway.

African American Theatre has a very dynamic and rich entity which comes from ancient Egyptian practices, and the African background of Greek legends contributed by Shakespeare. While black theatre was in its early stages, plays echoed of the lives they were living. Black American artists were constructing and preforming plays for mixed audiences as early as 1821. The dance and rhythm black people inherited caught the eyes of European audiences. Black theatre involves all sorts of black tradition with ancient stories, mythology, dances, music, and rich practices. It also contributed to the formation of America’s musical comedy acts. Social restrictions that

During the midst of the Great Depression, Americans were struggling in a fight to live. Factories all around the country were shutting down, causing people to be jobless, even homeless, unable to provide for their families. But the Factories were not the only ones affected. The theatre industry struggled to live on just as much, causing any enjoyment in life to be rare; which brought brilliant idea to the table, the Federal Theatre Project (FTP). This would not only bring jobs to those who are jobless, but bring back a scarce source of life, enjoyment. An Ideal Government funded theatre program the provided “free, adult, uncensored theatre,” as stated by the secretary of commerce, Harry Hopkins. And for 4 years, the FTP was actively trying to provide what it promised, but had a tragic downfall.

Starting in the golden age of 1950, a Broadway musical's critical judgement depended on how well the show’s elements were formally integrated. Meaning the outlook of the plot in relation to the music, lyrics and characterization of gender roles. Gender is a fundamental element of Broadway musical theatre, constitutional to the musical’s architecture. It is essential as a building block for characters, music/lyrics, and stage settings. Broadway musical is a popular art, in which conveys social issues in the female gender from the representations of women in the 1950's to today. The Broadway musical participates in a larger conversation about gender and sexuality because it is a commercial, profit-seeking, artistic commodity, entertainment form, and cultural product. Broadway musical is a mainstream form that needs to relate to middle-class audiences’ desires and expectations, one might expect only social issues and stereotypical representations of women. The female gender stereotypes are represented in Broadway musicals portrayed by the character's roles. As time went by, the portrayal of the female characters in musicals changed because of the representation that women in today receives. Thus, these musicals explore social issues of the day, including women’s rights and changing roles in U.S. culture, sometimes directly and sometime obliquely. Therefore, the Broadway musical venerates female performers and provides substantial roles for women.

It is said in the textbook that Broadway “refers specifically to plays performed in the large theatre” (Wilson 34). Broadway is larger than off- Broadway and also off-off-Broadway; it is considered the elite and tickets are more expensive of all of the other types of Broadway theatres, because they spend a lot more creating, running plays and the salary of the actors. Furthermore, “theatre companies have been formed, and theatre facilities built, for the continuing presentation of high-quality professional productions to local residents. The performers, directors and designers are generally high-caliber artists who make theatre their Full-time profession’ (Wilson 35). While off- Broadway theatre holds fewer seats than Broadway theatre, it

On September 24th, I went to see Sister Act at Great Theatre. This show is about Deloris van Cartier, a singer, who witnessed a man named Curtis commit a murder. She was then put under protection at a local convent. Deloris did not want to be at the convent, and Mother Superior didn’t want her to be there either. However, Deloris made the most out of the situation and decided to help their choir learn how to properly sing. Due to to the choir drawing so much attention Deloris was removed from the convent, which pleased Mother Superior. Eventually, Deloris did come back to sing with the choir in front of the pope, which is when Curtis the man she was hiding from found her, but all of the nuns stood up to Curtis with her and he landed himself in jail. Then Deloris and the nuns sang in front of the pope and all went well.

Twelfth Night is one of Shakespeare’s popular comedies, in which a female character, Viola, disguises herself as a man, creating a mess of same-sex sexual attraction along the rest of the play’s characters because of her breaking gender expectations. In the world in which the play takes place in, there are very sharp gender expectations, based on age, social level and appearance. In the play, surprisingly, Viola and her male character Cesario, are liked because as a girl she portrays characteristics that are expected from a male, and as a male, she is liked for her feminine characteristics. For instance Orsino falls for Viola because of her courage, heroism and independence which would typically be only be expected from men.

There are simple components for understanding human experience, expression and emotion. The phrase ‘less is more’ is regularly applied in contemporary art and performance. The Broadway production of A Chorus Line uses simple set design, limited costumes, and plot to establish authentic and relatable characters. Throughout the whole musical the whole objective is for the director to hire some chorus dancers for their next Broadway show. The dancers suffer through intense numbers and unprepared in-depth personal interviews. It’s within the interviews where each performer discloses personal and intimate stories about how the became who they are (Playbill Inc., 2017). Thus, one of the shows successes in winning Tony awards and Pulitzer Prize for

With up to 40 very different Broadway shows playing at any one time on the Great White Way in New York City, Broadway shows must actively market themselves to ensure new or continued success. Marketing campaigns begin very early in the process (sometimes as the Broadway-bound show is still being written) and often include a full-scale advertising assault that includes Print, Environmental, Web, Radio, TV, and Direct Mail ads. These measures are necessary because, at the end of the day, the success or failure of a Broadway show will depend wholly on how many tickets are sold. Critical accolades can also help with sustaining a Broadway musical or play, but there have been many times when the Tony Awards have been given to shows that have long

A show is only eligible for a Tony Award in the season that it opens. It doesn’t matter how long it runs after that. “Legitimate theatrical productions may be eligible for Tony Awards if they officially open on or before the cut-off date established by the Tony Awards Administration Committee” (tonyawards.com). Only Broadway shows are eligible for this award. Off Broadway shows are not eligible. “The Tony Awards Nominating Committee is a rotating group of up to 50 theatre professionals selected by the Tony Awards Administration Committee. Nominators serve for overlapping three-year terms. They are asked to see every new Broadway production and then meet each year shortly after the Tony eligibility deadline. They determine the nominations based