A theater history told with candor—critics Andrew Sarris and Clive Barnes are “idiots”—wit, and expertise. A distinguished...
An authoritative history of the “entire Chicago saga—a play, a silent film, a talkie, and only then the musical”—and beyond.
Does anyone know more about the Broadway musical than the prolific Mordden (When Broadway Went to Hollywood, 2016, etc.)? Now, instead of exploring another aspect of the genre’s history, the author focuses on the many iterations of one musical, the “fleet and ruthless” Chicago, a story of two women awaiting trial in a Chicago jail for murdering men. Like other satirical musicals, Chicago is “silly, loony, irreverent, and sexy, in the Offenbach tradition.” Mordden sees the “too easily underestimated show” as dealing with two of America’s “great myths,” the city itself and the 1920s. After opening chapters provide useful summaries of the city’s history, the author turns to Maurine Watkins, a Tribune reporter, and her 1926 play Chicago, which drew upon a pair of murder trials she reported on. Working in the “crook play-cum-courtroom drama” tradition, she “reinvents genre” in her play about the nature of power in America. Next came the silent movie version in 1927, directed by Cecil B. DeMille. Mating wicked doings with farce, his movie was the “tale of a troubled marriage. Of a decent and loving guy married to a user.” The second movie version, Roxie Hart (1942), directed by William A. Wellman and starring Ginger Rogers, was closer to the play than DeMille’s version. Mordden takes two chapters to discuss the brilliant 1975 Bob Fosse choreographed version of Chicago, starring Gwen Verdon, with its “razzamatazz” music and lyrics by John Kander and Fred Ebb. This multiple Tony winner, writes the author, was the “consummation of the musical satire.” Choreographer/director Rob Marshall won the Academy Award as Best Director for his 2002 Chicago, which captured Best Picture, one of few musicals ever to do so.
A theater history told with candor—critics Andrew Sarris and Clive Barnes are “idiots”—wit, and expertise. A distinguished investigation into the art form intellectuals scorn as “cotton candy.”Pub Date: April 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-19-065179-4
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Oxford Univ.
Review Posted Online: Dec. 18, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2018
An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s...
Music journalist and musician Wald (Talking 'Bout Your Mama: The Dozens, Snaps, and the Deep Roots of Rap, 2014, etc.) focuses on one evening in music history to explain the evolution of contemporary music, especially folk, blues, and rock.
The date of that evening is July 25, 1965, at the Newport Folk Festival, where there was an unbelievably unexpected occurrence: singer/songwriter Bob Dylan, already a living legend in his early 20s, overriding the acoustic music that made him famous in favor of electronically based music, causing reactions ranging from adoration to intense resentment among other musicians, DJs, and record buyers. Dylan has told his own stories (those stories vary because that’s Dylan’s character), and plenty of other music journalists have explored the Dylan phenomenon. What sets Wald's book apart is his laser focus on that one date. The detailed recounting of what did and did not occur on stage and in the audience that night contains contradictory evidence sorted skillfully by the author. He offers a wealth of context; in fact, his account of Dylan's stage appearance does not arrive until 250 pages in. The author cites dozens of sources, well-known and otherwise, but the key storylines, other than Dylan, involve acoustic folk music guru Pete Seeger and the rich history of the Newport festival, a history that had created expectations smashed by Dylan. Furthermore, the appearances on the pages by other musicians—e.g., Joan Baez, the Weaver, Peter, Paul, and Mary, Dave Van Ronk, and Gordon Lightfoot—give the book enough of an expansive feel. Wald's personal knowledge seems encyclopedic, and his endnotes show how he ranged far beyond personal knowledge to produce the book.
An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s personal feelings about Dylan's music or persona.Pub Date: July 25, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-06-236668-9
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Dey Street/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2015
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BOOK TO SCREEN
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Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
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