| Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining | | | | good example). While an opera singer is primarily a |
| music, songs, spoken dialogue and dance. The | | | | singer and only secondarily an actor, a musical |
| emotional content of the piece – | | | | theatre singer is usually an actor first, who can at |
| humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as | | | | least hold a tune and "put over" a song, but is |
| the story itself, is communicated through the | | | | often not a professional singer as such. |
| words, music, movement and technical aspects of | | | | Composers of music for musicals often have to |
| the entertainment as an integrated whole. | | | | take the limitations of such performers into |
| Musical theatre works, usually referred to as | | | | account, and theatres staging musicals generally |
| "musicals", are performed around the world. They | | | | use amplification of the actors' singing voices in a |
| may be presented in large venues, such as big | | | | way that would normally be disapproved of in an |
| budget West End and Broadway theatre | | | | operatic context. |
| productions in London and New York City, or in | | | | In isolation, at least, none of these features is |
| smaller Off-Broadway or regional productions, on | | | | truly "defining", and in practice it is often difficult |
| tour, or by amateur groups in schools, theatres | | | | to distinguish among the various kinds of light |
| and other performance spaces. In addition to | | | | musical theatre, including "operetta", "comic opera", |
| Britain and the U.S., there are vibrant musical | | | | "light opera", "musical play", "musical comedy", |
| theatre scenes in Germany, Austria, France, | | | | "burlesque", "travesty", and even "revue". Some |
| Canada, Japan, Eastern Europe, Australia, and | | | | works (e.g. by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen |
| other places. | | | | Sondheim) have received both "musical theatre" |
| Some famous musicals include Oklahoma!, The | | | | and "operatic" treatment. Similarly, some older |
| Sound of Music, West Side Story, Les | | | | operettas or light operas have had modern |
| Misérables, Cats, The Phantom of the | | | | productions or adaptations that treated them |
| Opera, Rent, and The Producers. | | | | very much as musicals. Sondheim said, "I really |
| The three main components of a musical are the | | | | think that when something plays Broadway it's a |
| music, the lyrics, and the book. The book of a | | | | musical, and when it plays in an opera house it's |
| musical refers to the "play" or story of the show | | | | opera. That's it. It's the terrain, the countryside, |
| - in effect its spoken (not sung) lines; however, | | | | the expectations of the audience that make it |
| "book" can also refer to the dialogue and lyrics | | | | one thing or another." This article primarily |
| together, which are sometimes referred to (as in | | | | concerns musical theatre works that are |
| opera) as the libretto (Italian for “little | | | | distinctively "non-operatic", but there inescapably |
| bookâ€). The music and lyrics together | | | | remains some overlap between lighter operatic |
| form the score of the musical. The interpretation | | | | forms and the more musically complex or |
| of the musical by the creative team heavily | | | | ambitious musicals: a grey area, in which |
| influences the way that the musical is presented. | | | | production values are almost as important as |
| The creative team includes a director, a musical | | | | actual musical or dramatic content in defining into |
| director and usually a choreographer. A musical's | | | | which artform the piece falls. |
| production is also creatively characterized by | | | | As with a well-crafted operetta or opera, a |
| technical aspects, such as set, costumes, stage | | | | "book" musical's moments of greatest dramatic |
| properties, lighting, etc. that generally change from | | | | intensity are often performed in song. Proverbially, |
| production to production (although some famous | | | | "when the emotion becomes too strong for |
| production aspects tend to be retained from the | | | | speech (or recitative) you sing; when it becomes |
| original production, for example, Bob Fosse's | | | | too strong for song, you dance." A song is (ideally |
| choregraphy in Chicago). | | | | at any rate) crafted to suit the character (or |
| There is no fixed length for a musical, and it can | | | | characters) and their situation within the story; |
| range from a short one-act entertainment to | | | | although there have been times in the history of |
| several acts and several hours in length (or even | | | | the musical (e.g. the 1920s) when this integration |
| a multi-evening presentation); however, most | | | | between music and story has been very tenuous. |
| musicals range from one and a half hours to | | | | A show very often opens with a song that sets |
| three hours. Musicals today are typically presented | | | | the tone of the musical, introduces some or all of |
| in two acts, with one intermission ten to 20 | | | | the major characters, and shows the setting of |
| minutes in length. The first act is almost always | | | | the play. Within the compressed nature of the |
| somewhat longer than the second act, and | | | | musical, the writers must develop the characters |
| generally introduces most of the music. A musical | | | | and the plot. Music provides a means to express |
| may be built around 4-6 main theme tunes that | | | | emotion. However, typically, many fewer words |
| are reprised throughout the show, or consist of a | | | | are sung in a five-minute song than are spoken in |
| series of songs not directly musically related. | | | | a five-minute block of dialogue. Therefore there is |
| Spoken dialogue is generally interspersed between | | | | less time to develop drama than in a straight play |
| musical numbers, although the use of "sung | | | | of equivalent length, since a musical usually |
| dialogue" or recitative is not unknown, especially in | | | | devotes more time to music than to dialogue. |
| so-called "sung-through" musicals. | | | | Many familiar musical theatre works have been |
| Musical theatre is closely related to another | | | | the basis for popular musical films, such as The |
| theatrical performance art, opera. These forms | | | | Sound of Music, West Side Story, and My Fair |
| are usually distinguished by weighing a number of | | | | Lady (although some movie musicals have been |
| factors. Musicals generally have a greater focus | | | | disappointing, as compared to the stage works) |
| on spoken dialogue (though some musicals are | | | | or were adapted or even written for television |
| entirely accompanied and sung through, such as | | | | presentations (for example Rodgers and |
| Jesus Christ Superstar and Les Misérables; | | | | Hammerstein's Cinderella). Recently, some popular |
| and on the other hand some operas, such as Die | | | | television programs have set an episode in the |
| Zauberflöte, and most operettas, have some | | | | style of a musical. There has also been a recent |
| unaccompanied dialogue), on dancing (particularly | | | | revival of the movie musical, such as Chicago. |
| by the principal performers as well as the chorus), | | | | Similarly, India produces numerous musical films, |
| on the use of various genres of popular music (or | | | | referred to as "Bollywood" musicals, and Japan |
| at least popular singing styles), and on the | | | | produces a considerable number of Anime stage |
| avoidance of certain operatic conventions. In | | | | musicals. Conversely, there has been a trend in |
| particular, a musical is almost never performed in | | | | recent decades to adapt musicals from the |
| any but the language of its audience. Musicals | | | | screen to the stage, both from popular animated |
| produced in London or New York, for instance, | | | | film musicals, such as Beauty and the Beast) and |
| are invariably sung in English, even if they were | | | | live-action films, such as The Producers and The |
| originally written in another language (again, Les | | | | Color Purple. |
| Misérables, originally written in French, is a | | | | |