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From Pauline Elizabeth Hopkins's 1879 musical Peculiar Sam to Lynn Nottage's 2021 musical MJ, the 'Black musical' does not get the credit it deserves for sustaining the genre we know and love. This introductory book is devoted to representative African-American perspectives in musical theatre from the literature of slavery and freedom, 1746-1865, to the contemporary period, offering the reader case studies of what the 'Black musical' is, how it works, and why it matters.Based on Glover's experience teaching Black musical theatre at a conservatory and in the liberal arts, he draws his close readings of Eubie Blake, Pauline Elizabeth Hopkins and Charlie Smalls from theory and practice. Moreover, Glover investigates how the ballet, the musical comedy, the opera, the play with music and the revue are similar and different narrative sub-genres. Finally, the book reflect on issues such as blackface minstrelsy, 'the Chitlin Circuit', non-traditional casting and yellowface.Published in the Topics in Musical Theatre series, this short book gives the reader new ways of seeing the aesthetically and politically capacious category of Black musical theatre from an anti-racist approach.

Hip-Hop culture's explosive arrival on the art scene of New York in the boroughs of Queens and the Bronx in the 1970s began to influence all aspects of musical theater from singing to scenic design. Hip-Hop in Musical Theatre takes an intersectional standpoint to explore Hip-Hop's influence on musical theater practice and aesthetics by giving the reader a comprehensive map of musical theater productions that have been impacted by Hip-Hop music and culture. Offering insightful briefs on musical theater productions that contain aesthetic, musical and embodied references to the global phenomenon of Hip-hop culture, this volume takes the reader through a virtual tour of Hip-Hop's influence on American musical theater. From early traces of hip-hop's rap scene in the 1970s that appeared in musicals such as Micki Grant's Tony Award nominated Don't Bother Me I Can't Cope (1971) and Broadway smash hits such as The Wiz (1974) to international juggernauts such as Lin-Manuel Miranda's Hamilton (2015), this introductory book decodes the sights and sounds of Hip-Hop culture within the socio-cultural context in which the musicals are produced.Published in the Topics in Musical Theatre series this volume presents fact-filled and insightful summaries of musicals that give the reader a snapshot of the musical and narrative content while highlighting which aspect of the music and culture of Hip-Hop informs acting, dancing, singing, design, and music in the selected musical while offering insightful analysis on the ways that hip-hop styles and politics have changed the shape of musical theater practice.

While most discussions of race in American theater emphasize the representation of race mainly in terms of character, plot, and action, Race in American Musical Theater highlights elements of theatrical production and reception that are particular to musical theater. Examining how race functions through the recurrence of particular racial stereotypes and storylines, this introductory volume also looks at casting practices, the history of the chorus line, and the popularity of recent shows such as Hamilton. Moving from key examples such as Show Boat! and South Pacific through to all-Black musicals such as Dreamgirls, Bring in 'da Noise, Bring in 'da Funk, and Jelly's Last Jam, this concise study serves as a critical survey of how race is presented in the American musical theater canon.Providing readers with historical background, a range of case studies and models of critical analysis, this foundational book prompts questions from how stereotypes persist to "who tells your story?"