CCS High School World History: Homework 3, Due March 23, 2012

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Homework 3, Due March 23, 2012

While finishing up our World War II unit I'd like to post a homework assignment I usually save until later in the school year. In honor of our drama department I'd like to turn your attention to the topic of culture and arts. While eating lunch at a restaurant, I am often struck by the complete silliness of it all: a crowd of people paying for food and service…and something else – the pleasure of eating tasty food. If we were strictly governed by logic wouldn't we would choose our meals based on nutritional value and cost effectiveness? Mealtime would be similar to recharging a cell phone – plug in, fill up, and go on. But that’s not what we do because, while our needs would be met, another need – the need for enjoyment – would go unfulfilled. So too we are motivated much more than we usually admit by the joy of creative art. One could apply the same standard to the clothes we wear, houses we live in, and many other things we do.

Society is usually defined by culture. When you think of the ancient Egyptians you probably think of their art and architecture (flat people and pyramids). When we talk about the past decades (think 1980s day) we picture the clothes people wore and the music they made. It seems that we are defined by a completely superfluous segment of our lives. (When I first arrived in Britain the TV shows Melrose Place and 90210 were big hits; I was asked several times if those shows were realistic portrayals of life in the US. Because Forrest Gump was in theaters, everyone wanted me to tell them the words to “Sweet Home Alabama”). Look around you…isn’t that just a little unsettling?

For millennia the stage has been a prominent part of human culture. It’s another illogical way that we find enjoyment - and accomplish complex tasks through storytelling. In America the heart of the stage can be found on a New York City street that dates back to the days of New Amsterdam; that street is, of course, Broadway. Every year millions of tickets are sold to the numerous theaters as crowds from around the world travel to see the very best in show business. This week our homework assignment will focus on the history of Broadway since 1900.
Follow the link http://www.talkinbroadway.com/bway101/ and choose an e
ssay about a decade of your choice (1900-1950) and report on your findings. Also comment on your favorite stage production (if you have one). The parameters of this assignment are exactly as every other assignment that has preceded it. Hope you enjoy it!

22 comments:

Daniel GonzálezThursday, March 22, 2012
In 1939-1949 the Great Depresion had changed the life of alot of americans including the actors and people involved in Broadway. The 1929-30 season made 233 productions. The 1930-31 season was reduced to 187 productions and all because of Hollywood taking away actors and actreseess from Broadway and alot of the theaters were changed from Broadway to Hollywood that means that there wouldn't be people acting a play on stage, there would be a screen instead with people from Hollywood playing.
In my opinion I think that people would be more mature, and realistic about life than they are now. There's people trying to do things that they see in the movie and they realize that is not possible. People wouldn't be as ignorant as they are now or maybe we wouldn't ignorants if the movies they make now days were educative but exciting, expensive and attractive like the movies they make now. I just think we should try to watch more plays from Broadway and act in our Drama department at school :D

Daniel González
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Jessi.lynneThursday, March 22, 2012
"A Bright Golden Haze" (1940 - 1950)
This particular period in the history of Broadway where a lot of specific changes took place. A new horizon was built for many types of people in different situations. This was around the time the Great Depression began to boil down to a halt people wanted a break from reality and get a quick entertaining escape and there needed to be stress relievers to start the recovery from depression. (No pun intended) Comedy was introduced and put into the life of Broadway during this time, it was a much welcomed new trend. And this was also a time when productions including blacks in big roles began to be noticed. They step out of their expected roles of maid and butler and quickly into the spot light. Just as a random interesting fact... one of the plays from the forties set the premise for the popular t.v. show Green Acres. Awesome show! But anyways I think it is safe to assume that this period in history very actively opened many doors for America today. What would we do with out our romantic comedies and our stress relievers?!? Broadway is the first stepping stone to all greatness(:
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bobbyhekelFriday, March 23, 2012
The American theater (1920-1930)
In the post World War I era, America saw a push for Repertory Theater, a type of theater were one performance company will rent a theater and use it to present various forms of drama, usually in some variety of a rotation. Also during this time, thanks to generous contributors, a new national theater was built in central New York City, but people soon released what a bad theater this was, and it soon was abandoned. During this time famous musicals like Carousal, South Pacific, and Show Boat were produced.
The ‘20s also saw an inclusion of blacks in the theater, not only in black productions for white people, and in lead roles in white productions. This African-American involvement in Broadway might have been a sign of what was to come in about forty years- civil rights. The popularity of these African-American musicals also might have been influential in the popularity of jazz music.
This decade also saw a “policing” of the theatrical works, “not only do we want art, but we want it to be clean and appropriate.
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Catelyn A.Friday, March 23, 2012
The Great White Way:

Broadway wasn’t what you might think it would be at the time of its birth around 1810. It consisted of two main theatres on a portion of the actual street called Broadway, The Park Theatre and The Bowery. Many of the actors on Broadway were not Americans. They were imported from Europe to perform plays throughout the country. Eventually, though, American actors became more prominent and were exported to perform in Europe. Many of these acting troupes travelled through circuits depending upon the owners of the theatres who hired them. By 1821, Broadway “aristocratic” families were beginning to emerge. Some of these families included the Booths and the Barrymores. On April 16, 1865, John Wilkes Booth, a member of one of these “aristocratic” families, made headlines when he shot President Abraham Lincoln. This event forced Booth’s father into an early retirement which he later emerged from to perform once again. By 1891, the first electric marquis were lit upon Broadway, and before long it was transformed into a “Great White Way.” It was named thusly due to the color of the lights being only white. The first moving electric sign was erected in modern-day Times Square, previously called Longacre Square. By 1900, seventy plays and musicals were performed each season on Broadway. In the following decades that number quadrupled. Today only four theatres are located on the actual Broadway, but many are located in the surrounding area.
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AnonymousFriday, March 23, 2012
As the 1930s arrived with bells and breadlines the number of the Broadway people affected by the stock market crash was majorly uncountable. Everyone from producers, such as Flo Ziegfeld - who closed his hit production of “Whoopie” so that he might, could rush it into film production - to ushers, whose theaters remained very dark and empty, was affected by the awful crash. In the 1929-30 season produced 233 productions. The 1930-31 seasons was definitely reduced to 187 productions. It has been figured that the talent that Hollywood finally absorbed from Broadway was in the vicinity of about 75%.
The 1930’s also marked another change in our theater history. In March of the year1930 , both A. L. Erlanger and E. F. Albee died within a couple of days of each other, and vaudeville producer Fredrick Proctor died in September of that year (1930). In May of the following year (1931), David Belasco died. The creators of Broadway as it existed were passing, but there was new talent stepping in to take up the torch. Jessica Tandy made her Broadway debut in The Matriarch at the Longacre Theater (on 48th Street, Broadway) in March, and just a few days later, Mrs. Herbert Sondheim presented her husband - and the world - a son, Stephen. I thought this was a very interesting topic to study and read.(:
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Patricia SmithFriday, March 23, 2012
The Great Depression
When the Great Depression hit in 1930s-1940s, Broadway took a big hit. Big film producers had to slow production down and others had to close. In 1939, Broadway showed only 98 shows, the first for the turn of the century that didn’t show 100. In 1925, there were 1500 theaters in Vaudeville. In 1930 only 300 were left. Another huge event also happened in 1930. A. L. Erlanger and E. F. Albee, Fredrick Proctor, and David Belasco passed away not too far apart. Even though many of the creators of Broadway died, there were new individuals ready to take their spots. Many new actors, actresses, and plays were being made, some which would become famous. Eva Le Gallienne's Civic Repertory Theater on 14th Street staged Allison's House, which won the Pulitzer Prize. Miss Glaspell and her husband, George Cram Cook, were partly responsible for discovering Eugene O’Neil. Lawrence Langner and the Guild did a production of Green Grow the Lilacs by Lynn Riggs. It had a run of 64 performances. Another Guild production was Eugene O’Neil’s comedy, Ah Wilderness. Other important productions were Girl Crazy, Once in a Lifetime and Of Thee I Sing, which ran for 441 performances.
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UnknownSaturday, March 24, 2012
The Great White Way

Broadway wasn't always what it is like today. In 1890 Broadway was the street from north from the Battery to the beautiful Park Theater on Park Row.
Many european actors were imported and America soon produced its own stars and companies.
Most of the theater at that time was imported from Europe because of the huge amount of immigrants. Especially plays and operettas were deeply entrenched.
By the 1830's America started exporting stars to Europe. Edwin Forrest would be the first notable American actor to make a successful tour.
In the following years many plays and novels were coming up such as “Uncle Tom's Cabin” which had 300,000 copies in print or “Camille, or, the Fate of a Coquette”, a controversial play by Miss Jean Davenport.
On April 14, 1865, John Wilkes Booth found another way to make headlines at the Ford Theater in Washington, D.C.. The assassination of Lincoln brought Edwin Booth under suspicion as well and sent him into instant retirement. It only lasted a year. He opened his own theater on 23rd and Sixth Ave. The prize to build and amazed audiences with the effects that were possible with the latest designs in stage equipment was a million dollars. But soon the stir abated on Broadway. Unfortunately, the theater failed under bad management and was razed a few years later.
In 1891, the first electric marquis was lit on Broadway.
So you see that nineteenth century theater was based on stars or companies with a repertoire of programs who would perform until the ran out of material or audiences, and then move on to the next theater.
The beginning of the boom on Broadway finally was in the 1900-1901. By that time there were seven Vaudeville houses and six Burlesque theaters presenting their shows to a theater obsessed population of just over three and a half-million inhabitants.
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Christian S.Saturday, March 24, 2012
Broadway during the great depression:
In the season before the stock market crash Broadway had over 233 new productions. The 1930-31 season only produced 187 new shows. The production of new shows went down the next the following years as well until it reached a low of 98 new shows. The economic problems were bad, many theaters closed or they changed their program from shows to movies. Also Hollywood could grab a huge chunk of the talents from Broadway with its better sell ability to the American public. Vaudeville a street similar to the Broadway went from 1500 theaters to only 300. Those numbers show the big crisis in which the industry was in. Another problem that came along with the stock market crash were the deaths of A. L. Erlanger and E. F. Albee, two famous authors, only a few days from each other. A funny story of the 1930’s was when the play “Pleasure Man” was released. 52 Members of the cast were arrested, under them men in drag, they were charged with obscenity charges, but the jury dismissed them. This incident resulted in the “Wales Padlock Law”, which stated that only the authors and producers of a play could be held responsible for the contents.
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Christian S.Sunday, March 25, 2012
@ Lara
You did a very good job with your essay, it contains a lot of interesting facts about the history of Broadway. I really like the story about the father of Booth, it is kind a sad to hear that his family got effected by this terrible crime. I also like the facts about how theater worked earlier, I didn’t know that the companies would perfume until they could no more and just would move on to the next theater.
@ Patricia
You did a very good job with your essay, it contains a lot of interesting facts and since I choose the same topic it is nice to hear some other parts of the essay.
@ Catelyn
You did a very good job with your essay, there is a lot of interesting information in it. I think it is interesting that at the start of Broadway many actors were imported from Europe, you don’t expect that since today’s actors are mostly from The US.
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