In the early 1940’s, the audience members of the theater knew exactly what they would see at a musical comedy. Defined by the “Follies formula,” the American musical followed a very precise recipe that produces success every time: a chorus line of beautiful women in revealing costumes; jazzy, upbeat tunes; coarse jokes and cheap gags; and a rollicking opening number.
Most musicals consisted of great numbers strung together with a decidedly flimsy plot. Even in a more narrative show, irrelevant songs tended to grind the action to a halt; comic songs were often about current events that had no connection to the plot. The formula was absolute – most producers on Broadway thought that it was impossible to fill seats without having pretty girls, silly antics, and catchy tunes. …show more content…
The audience was in for a rude awakening that Oklahoma was not an ordinary musical.
It scrapped Follies’ formula of a successful play. Even though the production was filled of dancers, it had different style than the formula of the previous production on Broadway. Oklahoma had a ballet troupe instead of a chorus line – and the ballerinas, legs covered in long skirts, in which they didn’t even appear onstage until 40 minutes into the first act. The cast comprised a collection of talented no-names, instead of big-time stars. Even the songs style was different they weren’t your average catchy show tunes. These songs contained real dialogue and were actually relevant to the
Most musicals consisted of great numbers strung together with a decidedly flimsy plot. Even in a more narrative show, irrelevant songs tended to grind the action to a halt; comic songs were often about current events that had no connection to the plot. The formula was absolute – most producers on Broadway thought that it was impossible to fill seats without having pretty girls, silly antics, and catchy tunes. …show more content…
The audience was in for a rude awakening that Oklahoma was not an ordinary musical.
It scrapped Follies’ formula of a successful play. Even though the production was filled of dancers, it had different style than the formula of the previous production on Broadway. Oklahoma had a ballet troupe instead of a chorus line – and the ballerinas, legs covered in long skirts, in which they didn’t even appear onstage until 40 minutes into the first act. The cast comprised a collection of talented no-names, instead of big-time stars. Even the songs style was different they weren’t your average catchy show tunes. These songs contained real dialogue and were actually relevant to the