by Sandra Cole

Created on: April 14, 2009

The American beginnings of "Broadway" musical theater came in 1750 when a resident professional theater company was established and presented early works such as The Beggar's Opera and Shakespearean plays. More theaters opened in downtown New York as the popularity of watching plays grew. Later theaters moved to the less expensive midtown area and eventually migrated to the Times Square

area or Broadway as we know it today.

As the locations evolved, so did the nature of the theater productions that were staged, often reflecting the culture of the country at that point in time. Theaters began to produce plays such as The Black Crook, written by American playwrights, a change from the earlier European productions.
Often singing and dance numbers were added to the plays.

Plots, if any, were very loose and the early plays were often more like revues. More sophisticated than vaudeville and burlesque, they lacked the dramatic or comedic impact of the performances we see today.

New York prospered and street lighting made evening travel safer. The number of theater patrons grew and the variety and number of plays increased accordingly. Gilbert and Sullivan productions such as The Mikado and The Pirates of Penzance crossed the ocean in the late 1800's and were very popular. At this time Broadway became known as The Great White Way when it was found that colored light bulbs burned out too quickly, and white light bulbs were installed in all the illuminated signs there.

During the years of World War I, the theater produced light plays, designed to let people escape from the worries of the day.

In the Roaring Twenties star power became the largest draw and musicals then had extravagant sets and costumes and featured elaborate song and dance numbers. They made up for their lack of plot by using lovely, memorable songs from composers such as George Gershwin and Cole Porter. Such songs as "Tea for Two" and "S Wonderful" came from the Twenties and remain as classics today.

In the late Twenties and into the Thirties, Broadway plays developed with meaningful plots. Show Boat tied lovely melodies together with a social commentary on the state of racial policies of the time. Porgy and Bess, by George Gershwin melded dramatic scenes with music that was nearer to opera than the usual carefree Broadway music.

In the 1940's Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein dominated the world of Broadway. Oklahoma!,
Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I, and The Sound of Music kept theaters filled through

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