Overview

As the composer/lyricist for Godspell, Pippin, Wicked, and other musicals, Stephen Schwartz has enjoyed one of the mostsignificant careers in American musical theater for more than four decades. Schwartz has also achieved success on the big screen, contributing to such films as Enchanted, The Prince of Egypt, and Pocahontas. For his work, he has received six Tony nominations, three Grammys, and three Academy Awards. The Musical Theater of Stephen Schwartz: From Godspell to Wicked and Beyond is a detailed examination of Schwartz’s various projects throughout his career. Musicologist Paul R. Laird discusses at length Schwartz’s major shows and also considers his other ventures, such as the music and lyrics for animated features from Disney and Dreamworks. The book focuses on two major aspects of Schwartz’s creations: the process of collaboration resulting in a project’s completion and a descriptive analysis of his music and lyrics. Laird also describes each show’s critical reception and its place in the larger history of musical theater. Based on extensive interviews with Schwartz and a number of his major collaborators, this book provides a rare look into the creation of the composer and lyricist’s shows and films. The Musical Theater of Stephen Schwartz is intended for fans as well as students and professional researchers in music, theater, and the musical theater.

Full Product Details

9780810891913

Table of Contents

Reviews

Laird has crafted a scholarly yet accessible review of composer/lyricist Schwartz's work. While sentences like 'The choral writing is in four parts with a few passing tones' will only resonate with readers who have studied music, there is still lots here for fans of musical theatre-and even a few tidbits for Disney and Dreamworks fans who are fond of the musical scores of Pocahontas and The Prince of Egypt. Laird's most insightful coverage is of Schwartz's work on Godspell and Pippin, composer's earliest successes. Interviews with Schwartz reveal both insider secrets and fun trivia, including that Godspell's most famous song, 'Day by Day,' is modeled on Burt Bacharach and Hal David's 'What the World Needs Now.' Publishers Weekly Seated next to Stephen Sondheim in the front row of the American musical theater pantheon is the prolific and prodigiously talented composer/lyricist Stephen Schwartz (b. 1948). Throughout a career spanning four decades that includes such hits as Godspell, Pippin, and Wicked, Schwartz has been honored with multiple Tony nominations, three Grammys, and three Academy Awards. Musical theater scholar Laird has written an in-depth study focusing on Schwartz's projects and music. Acknowledging Carol de Giere's biographical contributions in her 2008 book, Defying Gravity, the author concentrates on the music and musical styles of Schwartz's theater and film work. Arranged chronologically, the title begins with an introduction to Schwartz with individual chapters on Godspell; his collaboration with Leonard Bernstein on Bernstein's Mass; Broadway and off-Broadway shows Pippin, The Magic Show, The Baker's Wife, Working, Rags, and Children of Eden; Schwartz's work on animated features for Disney and DreamWorks; then the success of the musical Wicked; his opera, Seance on a Wet Afternoon, and works outside Broadway and Hollywood. VERDICT Laird offers a definitive musical analysis of Schwartz's incredible career to date. A trenchant investigation that is both erudite and accessible, this book is an essential acquisition for all academic, professional, and large public library collections. Library Journal, Starred Review

Author Information

Paul R. Laird is professor of musicology at the University of Kansas, where he teaches courses in music history, musical theater, and directs the Instrumental Collegium Musicum. He is the coauthor of Historical Dictionary of the Broadway Musical (2007) and author of The Baroque Cello Revival: An Oral History (2004) and Wicked: A Musical Biography (2011), all published by Scarecrow Press.

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