Gotta Sing! Gotta Dance! will explore the creation of the American musical theater and trace the influence of minstrelsy, vaudeville, burlesque, revue, and operetta in the evolution of this unique American form of lyric theater. From Stephen Foster to Stephen Sondheim, the course will chart the development of America’s great, original gift to the world: the musical.
Gotta Sing! Gotta Dance! will toast the tunesmiths and poets of Broadway whose collective genius created the golden age of the American musical theater. The course will celebrate the Broadway musical heritage of Cohan, Kern, Porter, Gershwin, Berlin, Rodgers and Hart and Hammerstein, Sondheim, and Webber as we journey from musical comedy to musical theater to pop opera.
Musical theater comes alive with rare archival footage of performances that capture the elusive star quality of Mary Martin, Ethel Merman, Alfred Drake, Julie Andrews, John Raitt, Patti Lupone, Bernadette Peters, and many others whose stage magic and artistry made the musical sing. Take a front row seat: It’s curtains up! Light the lights! and standing room only for Gotta Sing! Gotta Dance!
