Rodgers and Hammerstein

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Rodgers (left) and Hammerstein (right), with Irving Berlin (middle) and Helen Tamiris, watching auditions at the St. James Theatre
Rodgers (left) and Hammerstein (right), with Irving Berlin (middle) and Helen Tamiris, watching auditions at the St. James Theatre

Rodgers and Hammerstein were an American songwriting duo consisting of Richard Rodgers (1902 – 1979) and Oscar Hammerstein II (1895 – 1960). They are most famous for creating a string of immensely popular Broadway musicals in the 1940s and 1950s, during what is considered the golden age of the medium. Five of their shows were outstanding successes: Oklahoma! (their first collaboration); Carousel; South Pacific; The King and I; and The Sound of Music. In all, among the many accolades their shows (and their film versions) garnered were thirty-four Tony Awards; fifteen Academy Awards; the Pulitzer Prize; and two Grammys: this, in spite of the fact that Rodgers and Hammerstein began writing together before the era of the Tonys - Oklahoma! opened in 1943 and Carousel in 1945, and the Tonys were not awarded until 1947.


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[edit] Common theme in addressing social issues

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While the duo's work contains some of the happiest, cheerful, and most uplifting songs in American pop culture, there was a higher purpose addressed in many of their works. South Pacific clearly addresses racism. Its song "You Have to be Carefully Taught" candidly conveys that racial biases are not human nature - they are "taught" through social norms and culture. The King and I demonstrates a society where women are slaves, prompting the protagonist, Anna, to speak out against it. The issue of domestic violence is again addressed in Carousel. Sexism and classism are artfully addressed in Rodgers & Hammerstein's work.

The Sound of Music notably addresses the takeover of Austria by the Third Reich. The pain of Austrians watching their country go under foreign invasion is suggested by the final performance of "Edelweiss." In reality most Austrians were enthusiastic supporters of the Anschluss. While their works are immensely entertaining, it appears that they tried to also teach lessons through song and music. They could have made their musicals without addressing these topics, yet apparently sought to enlighten their audiences as well. To great effect, this may have enhanced the popularity of their work.[citation needed]

[edit] Previous work and partnerships

See also: Rodgers and Hart

Rodgers had previously been in a successful partnership with Lorenz Hart; among their Broadway hits were the shows Babes in Arms, Pal Joey and A Connecticut Yankee. Hammerstein, a co-writer of the popular Rudolf Friml operetta Rose Marie, began a successful collaboration with composer Jerome Kern on Sunny, which was a great hit; their 1927 musical Show Boat is considered to be one of the masterpieces of the American musical theatre. Among others, Hammerstein continued to work with Kern and operetta composer Sigmund Romberg on shows such as Sweet Adeline, Music in the Air and Very Warm for May. Although the last of these was panned by critics as a failure, it contained one of Kern and Hammerstein's best-loved songs, All the Things You Are.

In the meantime, Lorenz Hart sank deeper into alcoholism and became more unreliable, prompting Rodgers to approach Hammerstein to ask if he would consider the possibility of working with him.

[edit] Early work: Oklahoma! and Carousel

[edit] Oklahoma!

Main article: Oklahoma!

Independently of each other, Rodgers and Hammerstein had been attracted to making a musical based on Lynn Riggs' stage play Green Grow the Lilacs. When Jerome Kern declined Hammerstein's offer to work on such a project and Hart refused Rodgers' offer to do the same, Rodgers and Hammerstein began their first collaboration together. The result, Oklahoma! (1943), marked a revolution in musical drama. Although not the first musical to tell a story of emotional depth and psychological complexity, Oklahoma! introduced a number of new storytelling elements and techniques. These included its focus on emotional empathy; characters and situations far removed from the audience by time and geography; its use of American historical and social materials; and its use of dance and song to convey plot and character rather than act as an intermission or diversion from the story.

The first production was called Away We Go! and opened in the Shubert Theatre in New Haven during March 1943. Only a few changes were made before it opened on Broadway, but two would prove significant: the addition of a show-stopping number, Oklahoma!; and the decision to retitle the musical after it.

The original Broadway production opened on March 31, 1943 at the St. James Theatre. At the time, roles in musicals were usually filled by actors who could sing, but Rodgers and Hammerstein chose the reverse, casting singers who could act. As a result, there were also no stars in the production, another unusual step. Nevertheless, the production ran for a then unprecedented 2212 performances, finally closing on May 29, 1948. Many enduring musical standards come from this show - among them Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin', The Surrey with the Fringe on Top, People Will Say We're in Love, and the title song, Oklahoma!

In 1955 it was adapted to make an Academy Award-winning musical film, shot both in the then new 70mm widescreen Todd-AO format and the more established Cinemascope format for theatres without 70mm projection equipment. The film's soundtrack was #1 on the 1956 album charts.[1]

After their initial success with Oklahoma!, the pair took a small break from working together and Hammerstein concentrated on the musical Carmen Jones, a Broadway version of Bizet's Carmen with the characters changed to African-Americans in the then-modern South, for which he wrote the book and lyrics.

[edit] Carousel

Main article: Carousel (musical)

The original production of Carousel was directed by Rouben Mamoulian and opened at Broadway's Majestic Theatre on April 19, 1945, running for 890 performances and closing on May 24, 1947. The original cast included John Raitt, Jan Clayton, Jean Darling, Eric Mattson, Christine Johnson, Murvyn Vye, Bambi Linn, and Russell Collins. From this show came the hit musical numbers The Carousel Waltz (an instrumental), If I Loved You, June Is Bustin' Out All Over, and You'll Never Walk Alone.

Carousel was also revolutionary for its time — it was one of the first musicals to contain a tragic plot; the show was adapted from Ferenc Molnar's play Liliom. The 1956 film version of Carousel, made in Cinemascope 55, starred the same two actors who had starred in the movie of Oklahoma! - Gordon MacRae and Shirley Jones.

Carousel is unique among the Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals for not having an overture; both the stage and film versions began with the familiar Carousel Waltz. This music was included in John Mauceri's Philips Records CD of the complete overtures of Rodgers and Hammerstein with the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. It was also included in Rodgers' rare (1954) album for Columbia Records with the composer conducting the New York Philharmonic Orchestra.

[edit] State Fair

Main article: State Fair (1945 film)

In 1945, a Technicolor musical film version of Phil Stong's novel State Fair, with songs and script by Rodgers and Hammerstein, was released. The film, a remake of a 1933 non-musical Will Rogers movie of the same name, starred Jeanne Crain, Dana Andrews, Dick Haymes and Vivian Blaine. This was the only time the pair ever wrote a score directly for a film. It was a great success, winning R&H their only Oscar, for the song It Might as Well Be Spring. In 1962, there was an unsuccessful remake of the musical film, and it was not until years later that the musical was finally performed onstage for the first time - also unsuccessfully.

[edit] South Pacific

Main article: South Pacific (musical)

South Pacific opened on Broadway on April 7, 1949, and ran for more than five years. A number of its songs, such as Bali Ha'i, Younger than Springtime, and Some Enchanted Evening, have become worldwide standards. For their adaptation, Rodgers and Hammerstein, along with co-writer Joshua Logan, won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1950. The play is based upon two short stories by James A. Michener from his book Tales of the South Pacific, which itself was the winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1948. The original cast starred Mary Martin as the heroine Nellie Forbush and opera star Ezio Pinza as Emile de Becque, the French plantation owner. Also in the cast were Juanita Hall, Myron McCormick, Betta St. John, and William Tabbert. The 1958 film version, also directed by Logan, starred Mitzi Gaynor, Rossano Brazzi, John Kerr, Ray Walston, and Juanita Hall. Brazzi, Kerr, and Hall had their singing dubbed by others. Much of the film was shot on location on the island of Kauai in Hawaii.

[edit] The King and I

Main article: The King and I

Based on Margaret Landon's Anna and the King of Siam, the biographical story of Anna Leonowens, governess to the children of King Mongkut of Siam in the early 1860s, Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical The King and I opened on Broadway on March 29, 1951 and starred Gertrude Lawrence as Anna, and a mostly unknown Yul Brynner as the King. This musical featured the hit songs I Whistle a Happy Tune; Hello, Young Lovers; Getting to Know You; We Kiss in a Shadow; Something Wonderful; I Have Dreamed; and Shall We Dance?

It was adapted for film in 1956 with Brynner re-creating his role opposite Deborah Kerr (whose singing was largely dubbed by Marni Nixon). Brynner won an Oscar as Best Actor for his portrayal, and Kerr was nominated as Best Actress. Brynner reprised the role twice on Broadway in 1977 and 1985, and in a short-lived TV sitcom in 1972, Anna and the King.

[edit] Flower Drum Song

Main article: Flower Drum Song
See also: Flower Drum Song (film)

Based on a 1957 novel by C.Y. Lee, Flower Drum Song takes place in San Francisco's Chinatown in the late 1950s. The original 1958 production was directed by dancer/singer/actor Gene Kelly. The story deals with a young Chinese woman who illegally comes to America in hopes of marrying a wealthy young Chinese-American man, who is already in love with a Chinatown nightclub dancer. The young man's parents are traditional Chinese and want him to marry the Chinese woman, but he is hesitant until he falls in love with her. The 1961 film adaptation was a lavish Ross Hunter production released by Universal Studios.

[edit] The Sound of Music

Main article: The Sound of Music
See also: The Sound of Music (film)

The Sound of Music was Rodgers and Hammerstein's last work together. It told the story of the von Trapp family. It opened on Broadway at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on November 16, 1959, and starred Mary Martin as Maria and Theodore Bikel as Captain von Trapp. It later was made into a movie (released in 1965) starring Julie Andrews as Maria and Christopher Plummer as the Captain. The movie won five Oscars, including best picture and best director, Robert Wise. Hammerstein did not live to see the movie made. When Rodgers wrote two extra songs for the movie, he wrote the lyrics also. The Sound of Music probably contains more hit songs than any other Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, probably due more than anything to the phenomenal success of the film version. It was the most financially successful film adaptation of a Broadway musical ever made.

[edit] Legacy

These two artists completely re-worked the musical theatre genre. Before they came along musicals were whimsical and usually built around a star, although there were exceptions such as Show Boat, which was also co-written by Hammerstein. Because the efforts of Rodgers and Hammerstein were so successful, more musicals contained thought-provoking plots, and every aspect of the play, dance, song, and drama was important to the plot.

In 1950, the team of Rodgers and Hammerstein received The Hundred Year Association of New York's Gold Medal Award "in recognition of outstanding contributions to the City of New York." In addition to their enduring work, Rodgers and Hammerstein were also honored in 1999 with a United States Postal Service stamp commemorating their partnership

The Richard Rodgers Theatre in New York City is named after Rodgers.

[edit] List of shows

[edit] References

  1. ^ Oklahoma! (MCA/Capitol) at Allmusic

[edit] Additional sources

  • Nolan, Frederick "The Sound of Their Music: The Story of Rodgers and Hammerstein" (New York: Applause Books, 2002) ISBN 1-55783-473-3

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals