Rodgers and Hammerstein
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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; two Pulitzer Prizes; and two Grammys. However, Rodgers and Hammerstein began writing together before the era of the Tonys - Oklahoma! opened in 1943 and Carousel in 1945, and the Tonys did not begin to be awarded until 1947.
Contents |
[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. They made a secret arrangement, which came into force when Hart was not available to work on the project that was to become Oklahoma![1] When working with Hart, Rodgers would always write the music for Hart to write the lyrics. However, when he teamed up with Hammerstein, Hammerstein would write the lyrics first and then Rodgers would write the music.
[edit] Early work: Oklahoma! and Carousel
[edit] 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. 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.
After their initial success with Oklahoma!, the pair took a small break from working together.
[edit] Carousel
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.
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.
[edit] State Fair
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
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
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.
It was later adapted for film, in 1956 with Brynner re-creating his role opposite Deborah Kerr. 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] 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.
[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. After them, musicals contained thought provoking plots and every aspect of the play, dance, song and drama, were 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 for Rodgers.
[edit] List of shows
- (1943) Oklahoma!
- (1945) State Fair
- (1945) Carousel
- (1947) Allegro
- (1949) South Pacific
- (1951) The King and I
- (1953) Me and Juliet
- (1955) Pipe Dream
- (1957) Cinderella (first version for television)
- (1958) Flower Drum Song
- (1959) The Sound of Music
- (1965) Cinderella (second version for television). Rodgers was executive producer; Hammerstein had died five years earlier.
- (1993) A Grand Night for Singing (revue)
- (1996) State Fair
- (1997) Cinderella (third television version)
[edit] References
- ^ Rodgers, Richard Musical Stages, an autobiography W.H. Allen & Co. Ltd., (1975) pp. 207-217 ISBN 0-491-01777-4
