People Will Say We’Re In Love With Show
Filed Under Curtain Rods | Posted on November 13, 2008
Audience members who settle into their Culbreth Theatre seats next week to see the University of Virginia Department of Drama’s production will not only sample a slice of Americana and a heaping helping of memorable tunes, but also a glimpse of a moment when theater history changed.
The 1943 musical was a landmark for many reasons. For starters, it was the first collaboration between Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, who became one of Broadway’s most legendary teams. The curtain went up not on a splashy production number filled with leggy chorus girls, but on a no-frills farm woman with a churn. And it addressed some decidedly non-fluffy themes isolation, rivalry and death.
Agnes de Mille’s famed ballet advanced the plot by revealing what characters were thinking, instead of merely injecting some action. The barn door had been kicked open for musicals that questioned racial prejudice, that commented on political issues, that sent protagonists to war and to the morgue. And it was safe to stray from cut-and-dried characterizations and show villains that aren’t completely vicious and heroes that aren’t spotless.
At the same time, it charmed its audiences especially service members getting ready to ship out to serve in World War II, and the loved ones who stayed behind and wondered when they’d return.
Tags: agnes de mille, audience members, chorus girls, culbreth theatre, farm woman, legendary teams, memorable tunes, morgue, oscar hammerstein ii, racial prejudice, richard rodgers, richard rodgers and oscar hammerstein, rivalry, service members, theater history, university of virginia, villains, virginia departmentRelated posts
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