1. Popular Musical Theater and Opera from the Age of Andrew Jackson to the Present

2. Musical Theatre vs. Opera  Venues  Opera uses music continuously  Singing styles  Opera is considered “elite & sophisticated”  Musical theater is thought of as “popular & lowbrow”  Both use singing, dancing, acting, & a stage to tell the story

3. A Desire for Entertainment  1820-1840 saw westward expansion and political populism  Admission of new states: Missouri, Arkansas, & Michigan  Erie Canal opened  The railroad  Illustrated printed sheet music was made available to more of population  Cities grow, and so does the entertainment industry  Olio (predated Vaudeville)  Circus (comic song & dance)

4. Minstrelsy  Blackface as impersonation  2 main stage types by 1830  Gumbo Chaff or Jim Crow  Zip Coon or Dandy Jim  Popularity lost after the Civil War  All black minstrel companies provided employment

5. America Hits the Stage Broadway  First hit, The Black Crook (1866) at Niblo’s Garden Vaudeville  Stemmed from minstrel theater, English music halls, beer halls, & saloons  Father of Vaudeville, Antonio “Tony” Pastor Comic Opera and American Musicals  H.M.S Pinafore & The Pirates of Penzance  The Harrington & Hart comedies  Black Musicals helped usher in Harlem Rennaisance

6. 30 Years of Musical Growth Show Boat (1927) West Side Story (1957) New shows produced 29 out of 30 years Jerome Kern (1885-1945) Irving Berlin (1888-1989) George Gershwin (1898-1937) Richard Rodgers (1902-1979) Cole Porter (1891-1964)

7. Musical Theater since West Side Story  A Chorus Line (1975)  Sweeney Todd (1979)  Cats (1981)  Sunday in the Park with George (1984)  Grand Hotel (1989)  Sunset Boulevard (1993)  Rent (1996) Rent (1996)  The Producers (2001)

8. American Opera  Productions took off between 1910-1935  Porgy & Bess, by George Gershwin  Diverse themes taken from sources like novels and political events