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280:(1898) and eleven other "girl" musicals followed. The heroines were independent young women who often earned their own livings. The stories followed a familiar plot line – a chorus girl breaks into high society or a shop girl makes a good marriage to a wealthy aristocrat (who is often in disguise). There was always a misunderstanding during act one and an engagement at the end. In the words of a contemporary review, Edwardes’ musicals were "Light, bright and enjoyable." Later Gaiety Theatre "girl" musicals included
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216:. He took over London's Gaiety Theatre in the 1880s and, at first, improved the quality of the Gaiety Theatre's earlier burlesques. Perceiving that their time had passed, he experimented with a modern-dress, family-friendly musical theatre style, with breezy, popular songs, snappy, romantic banter, and stylish spectacle. These drew on the traditions of
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is generally regarded as the masterpiece of the genre. The composers were
Monckton and Talbot, both at the height of their powers. The story, about the havoc wreaked when truth-telling Arcadians arrive in corrupt London, neatly parallels the position of Edwardian musical comedies in theatrical
224:. Their plots were simple, and they included elaborate displays of contemporary fashion and settings, and lighthearted parody of modern social convention and topical issues. He replaced the bawdy women of burlesque with his "respectable" corps of dancing, singing
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that, like other stars of musical comedy, "It is no good their pretending to be any one else. We go to see themselves, and all we ask is that the authors and others shall give them every chance of being themselves in the most pronounced and personal fashion".
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who wore the latest fashions, and also showed off their bodies in chorus lines and bathing attire, as well as singing, to complete the musical and visual fun. These shows were immediately widely copied at other London theatres and then in
America.
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489:. Generally, the book, lyrics and music were each written by different people, which was a first for the musical stage, although now this is the usual way of doing things. Adrian Ross wrote the lyrics for well over 50 Edwardian musicals.
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in 1893, confirmed
Edwardes on the path he was taking. These "musical comedies", as he called them, revolutionized the London stage and set the tone for the next three decades. According to musical theatre writer
465:). Scores were constantly refreshed with "additional" or "specialty" numbers and re-arranged, often by several different composers and lyricists, to keep audiences coming back. Important writers included
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194:(1886) found success and showed that audiences wanted something lighter than operetta, but more coherent in construction than burlesque, that featured the modern fashions and culture of the day.
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The chief glories of
Edwardian musical comedies lie in their musical scores. At their best, these combined the delicacy and sophistication of operetta with the robust tunefulness of the
613:, which ran for a record setting 1,074 performances in London and 376 in New York. The story concerns couples who honeymoon in China and inadvertently break the kissing laws (shades of
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Edwardes' early Gaiety hits included a series of light, romantic "poor maiden loves aristocrat and wins him against all odds" shows, usually with the word "Girl" in the title. After
650:(1917, the second longest-running Edwardian musical, with 1,352 performances). Audiences wanted light and uplifting entertainment during the war, and these shows delivered it.
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were responsible for many of these shows. The musicals were frequently built around a resident company of artists, and the greatest stars of the era included actresses
82:, premiering in 1917, this new style of musical theatre proliferated across the musical stages of Britain and the rest of the English-speaking world. The popularity of
359:(1899) each ran for more than two years and found great international success, capitalizing on the British craze for all things oriental. Other Edwardes hits included
575:-singing Londoners, representing the future. This is an example of a common feature of shows of this period: sophistication with a common touch.
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699:
905:, vol. 4, no. 1, British-American Musical Interactions (Spring, 1986), pp. 34–49, University of Illinois Press, retrieved September 18, 2008
316:(1913). Perhaps to balance the "girl" musicals, the Gaiety also presented a series of what could be described as "boy" musicals, such as
739:
184:
operas. These two genres had dominated the musical stage in
English-speaking countries since the 1870s. A few lighter, more romantic
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92:(1893), led to an astonishing number of hits over the next three decades, into the 1920s, the most successful of which included
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in both directions. It began to dominate the
English musical stage, and even the American musical theatre, when the
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341:. Edwardes expanded his empire to other theatres and presented slightly more complex comedy hits beginning with
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were coming to the end of their popularity, and so was the phenomenally successful series of family-friendly
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249:, "The British Empire and America began to fall for the appeal of the musical comedy from the time when
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172:, as well as providing comfort to audiences seeking light entertainment during the First World War. The
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899:"From Pinafore to Porter: United States-United Kingdom Interactions in Musical Theater, 1879–1929"
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at
Musicals101.com, The Cyber Encyclopedia of Musical Theatre, Films and Television
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336:
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758:, George S. Lenox, Corinne Morgan, Grace Nelson, Bob Roberts and Frank C. Stanley)
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Description of books about
Edwardian musicals and people associated with them
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and captured the optimism, energy and good humour of the new century and the
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that thrived from 1892 into the 1920s, extending beyond the reign of King
1127:– Extensive information about female stars from Edwardian musical theatre
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1039:, Musical Theatre Guided Tour (PeoplePlay UK), accessed October 3, 2008
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operas' dominance had ended, until the rise of
American musicals by
568:
662:(1922) was considered a late example of Edwardian musical comedy.
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in 1892. Its success, together with the even greater sensation of
355:
202:
1146:
Synopses, libretti and MIDI files of
Edwardian Musical Comedies
578:
754:
Circa 1908 Edison Records recording by the "Edison Sextette" (
1092:
The London Stage, 1910–1919: A Calendar of Players and Plays
380:
164:
Edwardian musical comedy began in the last decade of the
571:-singing Arcadians, representing the past, meeting with
220:
and also used elements of burlesque and of Americans
1016:
List of longest-running plays in London and New York
599:
made a splash on both sides of the Atlantic, as did
979:
956:, pp. 262–266, Manchester University Press (2001)
1152:
1067:Article on the rise of Edwardian musical comedy
998:Compilation of longest-running plays in history
938:(New York: Taplinger Publishing, 1969), pp. 7–8
1048:"Little Nellie Kelly" in Thomas Hischak, ed.,
918:, New Line Theatre, 2008, accessed 7 July 2024
1135:and related publications, available articles
1050:The Oxford Companion to the American Musical
885:, Musicals Tour at PeoplePlayUK theatre site
871:
869:
619:). Later enormously popular hits included
953:Imperialism and Music: Britain, 1876–1953
916:"Curtain Up, Light the Lights: 1874–1900"
866:
780:
778:
776:
577:
405:. The major composers of the genre were
384:
212:The father of the Edwardian musical was
201:
18:
381:Composers, writers, producers and stars
232:The first Edwardian musical comedy was
1153:
1114:– biographies, synopses and MIDI files
773:
28:was a popular Edwardian musical comedy
1140:British musicals and light opera site
985:
784:
1131:British musical theatre publication
492:Besides Edwardes, American producer
255:was taken on a world tour in 1894."
13:
847:
673:
197:
14:
1182:
1105:
1072:Description of Edwardes' musicals
936:Raymond Mander and Joe Mitchenson
812:, London: Cassell (1975), p. 64
744:
726:Problems playing this file? See
704:
1079:Info about American productions
1052:(Oxford University Press, 2009)
1042:
1021:
1009:
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837:, pp. 198–219, Routledge, 2003
792:. London: Carlton. p. 56.
16:Form of British musical theatre
966:
941:
921:
908:
888:
834:Operetta: A Theatrical History
822:
1:
766:
718:recording by Frank C. Stanley
214:George "The Guv'nor" Edwardes
605:(1901), by British lyricist
582:Souvenir program cover, 1900
7:
609:and American-born composer
556:
10:
1187:
863:, ArthurLloyd theatre site
159:
1094:, Scarecrow Press (1982)
972:"Royal Adelphi Theatre",
647:The Maid of the Mountains
540:, George Grossmith, Jr.,
154:The Maid of the Mountains
79:The Maid of the Mountains
976:, 7 November 1910, p. 16
859:January 4, 2008, at the
700:In the shade of the palm
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496:and actor-managers like
33:Edwardian musical comedy
1112:British Musical Theatre
295:The Girls of Gottenberg
176:'s well-loved but racy
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548:. One critic wrote of
528:, leading men such as
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35:is a genre of British
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740:Tell me pretty maiden
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581:
536:, and comics such as
506:George Grossmith, Jr.
388:
368:The Earl and the Girl
205:
119:The Earl and the Girl
22:
462:Miss Hook of Holland
313:The Girl on the Film
182:Gilbert and Sullivan
45:Gilbert and Sullivan
1074:at PeoplePlayUK.org
659:Little Nellie Kelly
602:A Chinese Honeymoon
442:A Chinese Honeymoon
113:A Chinese Honeymoon
1123:2018-06-30 at the
1065:Charlton, Fraser.
1035:2008-07-04 at the
1003:2010-04-02 at the
881:2007-05-17 at the
679:
584:
538:Rutland Barrington
399:
362:The Girl from Kays
289:The Spring Chicken
210:
30:
1166:Victorian culture
1087:at Hobbyist.co.uk
1018:from 1875 to 1920
948:Richards, Jeffrey
829:Traubner, Richard
749:
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628:Theodore & Co
483:Charles H. Taylor
344:An Artist's Model
319:The Messenger Boy
307:The Sunshine Girl
222:Harrigan and Hart
188:, beginning with
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374:The Quaker Girl
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714:Circa 1902
683:Music from
640:Yes, Uncle!
597:Paul Rubens
487:Oscar Asche
467:Adrian Ross
457:Paul Rubens
417:Ivan Caryll
371:(1903) and
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334:(1906) and
310:(1912) and
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218:Savoy opera
152:(1916) and
61:Cole Porter
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1155:Categories
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767:References
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591:(1899) by
573:music hall
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412:The Geisha
403:music hall
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283:The Orchid
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588:Florodora
479:Owen Hall
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107:Florodora
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1033:Archived
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857:Archived
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788:(1995).
637:(1917),
631:(1916),
569:operetta
557:Examples
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347:(1895).
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268:(1894),
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356:San Toy
235:In Town
191:Dorothy
160:History
84:In Town
73:In Town
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