Many Musicals and plays have various genres and it is difficult for them to be labeled into just one genre. However most musicals or plays have more detail about one specific genre within the entirety of that play or production that makes it more specific to the story. Specific genres allow the layout of the play to become more clear and specific to the content being used. I have chosen Chicago and War horse to contrast as I believe they both have very different genres. Chicago’s genre is a Book musical where as War horse has a genre of contemporary theatre. Both these genres are contrasting in the fact that contemporary theatre relies on many different aspects yet a book musical only has three main aspects to create a piece.
Chicago has a genre of a book musical. A book musical is when dance, song and acting is integrated. Chicago includes the main components throughout the entire play to portray the entire story across to the audience. Chicago the musical was premiered on the 3rd of June, 1975, it’s an American musical Set in Prohibition-era Chicago. The musical is based on one of the play’s of chicago written in 1926 and this particular production is by Maurine Dallas Watkins. The play is about actual criminals and crimes she reported on in 1920.
‘We both reached for the gun’ is a well know song used within chicago. The performers used song and dance to portray the story and emotions across to the audience. This production links to Maurine Dallas Watkins version of ‘chicago’ in the fact that violence and crimes are associated throughout as the story line has not changed. Another part of the play that supports Maurine Dallas Watkins version of ‘chicago’ is “Yes, it was me! I shot him and I’m damned glad I did! And I’d do it again-,” the script this presents that the characters a criminal and shows how the storyline has came about.
Since the 20th century a book musical has been defined as a performance where musical numbers and dances are fully integrated into a well made story with defined dramatic goals. This has allowed the audience watching the play to be entertained throughout the musical. Song and dance was introduced when the emotion through acting couldn’t be performed further. This meant that it allowed the actors to develop a journey within the performance. The main components used within a book musical are music (which can use 4-6 main theme tunes and be reprised later in the show), lyrics (used to tell the story through song) and book (for example the script). The main components evokes genuine emotion other than just laughter which until a book musical was created wasn’t experienced.
A book musical involved a Creative team, Director, Choreographer and sometimes an Orchestra this would’ve been vital when dance, song and acting was integrated. Another aspect of a book musical was that they used set design, costume, probs, lighting and sound. It was the first musical to be presented in two acts.
A book musical was believed to of begun in ancient greece about 2,500 years ago. But a real development and feature of a book musical is the production ‘show boat’ based on Edna Ferber’s novel of ‘show boat’. Show boat was first ‘performed in 1927’ written by ‘Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II’. It was the first ever book musical in the world. Show boat is about a family of performers living on a show boat and have struggles of gambling, race, identity and poverty. In the play they have an overture and an entr’acte this is act 1 and act 2. The performance dominated American musical theatre as it was the first ever musical to use music, lyrics and book in one performance. Show boat dealt with themes such as racial politics and a love story similarly to Chicago with themes of society and class as well as a misleading love story. Show boat was the first integrated performance about African America which stunned most audiences back in 1927.
Other features of famous book musicals include; Oklahoma-1943, West side story-1957, The fantasticks-1960, Hair-1967, A chorus line-1975, Les Misérables-1985, Phantom of the opera-1986, Rent-1996, The producers-2001, Wicked-2003, Hamilton-2015.
The other Musical is War horse. War horse includes various genres such as War story, Physical Theatre, and contemporary theatre. War horse develops the story of World War 1. Based on the novel by Michael Morpurgo. ‘War horse is about Joey, young alberts horse who is sold to the calvary.Albert then goes on a mission to find him, it develops the emotion between the characters during the entire performance and presents the extraordinary journey they both go on to find each other’, it was first presented in 2007.
War horse has a genre of Contemporary theatre, contemporary theatre involves Text, objects, music, costumes, lighting, image, sound, set, and vocal expression. War horse uses these especially within the use of puppetry by the ‘handspring puppet company founded in 1981’. Puppetry is the making and manipulation for use in a theatrical show such as War horse. A puppet is moved and controlled by a human and is given life like features for example vocal noises, movement and the use of senses such as smelling which is presented to the audience.”The work, effort and energy the puppeteers provide to bring Joey to life is fantastic watch.” MK Citizen
Contemporary theatre is known as a more naturalistic production. For example it addresses issues from a more modern time. War horse uses a war story to illuminate its naturalistic features, contemporary theatre was then developed in the late 1960’s. In the 1960’s there was various themes used in theatre such as: ‘feminism, race, homosexuality, black comedy’. Often these are used in a more modern time but have been developed throughout the years.
History of contemporary theatre is Dramedy. Dramedy is a piece of theatre that has used contemporary work. Dramedy uses its genre in television and film works in order to plot elements that are a combination of comedy and drama. It is a subgenre of contemporary tragicomedy. It includes a serious and comedic subject which must involve an ensemble cast and clear plots.
During the Twentieth-century theatre there was a wide change within theatrical culture, the main changes were in Europe and North America. There became a large challenge resulting in the development of different forms of theatre, such as; modernism, Expressionism, Impressionism, and political theatre, as well as the developments of naturalism and realism, which are the main basis of contemporary theatre.
Contemporary theatre was used in various playwrights work such as;
Neil Labute he used contemporary theatre in his work including ‘The company of men’ in 1982, ‘The shape of things’ in 2001, and ‘Reasons not to be pretty’ in 2008.
The production of Chicago I saw was the broadway version, this particular production included concert staging, this is when the orchestra are placed on stage throughout the entire performance. On the other hand the uk tour of War horse was completely different the staging used in War Horse was a bleak open stage with a screen backdrop with various scenes on throughout the show which set the mood and location for the beginning scene.
Chicago has a musical genre of jazz fusion whereas War horse mainly has sound effects this contrasts both productions as it shows that one is a musical and one is a play based upon a book, it also defines the different genres showing that Chicago is a book musical because it includes dance, song and dialogue and presents war horse as contemporary theatre because it involves text, objects and some aspects of music. Both musicals have various contrasting features which are used to define them as different. I believe that War horse and Chicago are contrasting due to the various features that are presented in the different shows.