All tagged Very Good Eddie
Who doesn’t enjoy a cruise? I’ve never personally been on one, but that doesn’t stop me from fantasizing about it. Some voyages are better than others (so I’m told) but there is something exciting about the prospect. From the organized activities and entertainment to the plethora of buffets and exotic drinks served while sailing on the water, short of sea-sickness, it sounds like one could enjoy the experience. Shipboard storylines have certainly been the subject for a handful of Broadway musicals. Until I have the opportunity to secure my berth on a luxury liner, I will instead sit back and think about the Broadway musicals that have taken place aboard them.
Have any of you heard of “The Princess Musicals”? I am not speaking of the Disney musicals on Broadway featuring princesses as the show’s heroine, but rather a short-lived series of musicals that played at Manhattan’s Princess Theatre between 1915 and 1919. These intimate musical comedies would prove to be influential in shaping the future of musical comedy on Broadway. Taking a step away from the big-budget spectacles, musical revues, and operettas that were popular in the day, The Princess Musicals would take a different approach: youthful, exuberant musicals performed on a much smaller scale, manageably-sized to fit the 299 seat venue and its limited stage space. They would also be an early attempt at integrating the score with plot, though not as effectively as would be achieved with musicals such as Show Boat, Pal Joey, Lady in the Dark, and Oklahoma! further down the road.
