Broadway Bookshelf - Must Read Theater Books

Libretto for 2022 musical version of David Lindsay-Abaire's Kimberly Akimbo, with score by Jeanine Tesori. 120 pages.

Follows the American dance legend from her premature birth into a single-parent home in Springfield, Massachusetts, to her first Broadway performance at age fifteen, through her days as a blazing icon in the world of Hollywood, and finally, to her inspiring comeback. From rare documents, letters, and production files; and drawing on the authors' intimate personal relationships with Powell.

Featuring contributions from over eighty original cast members, creatives, crew and audience members, Out For Blood pieces together the surprising, hilarious and often-moving inside story of Carrie The Musical to discover how this 'horror of a Broadway musical' lived, died and was subsequently resurrected as a mainstream success story. In 1988, following the success of its production of Les Misérables and in the wake of the commercial success of mega-musicals such as Cats, Phantom of the Opera...

Play by Lauren Yee. 96 pages.

Gives his account of how Evita, Cats, Starlight Express, Les Misérables, The Phantom of the Opera, Chess, and Miss Saigon changed the business of musical theater in the 1980s. With insightful, personal stories from cast members, set designers, musical supervisors, dancers, lighting designers, production managers, singers, and choreographers ... and the backstage drama, production nightmares, and financial woes that threatened to derail the shows at multiple points. 268 pages.

Chronological review of the long journey to bring the culture of gay men and women onto the American stage. From the genteel female impersonators of the 1910s to the raucous drag queens of La Cage aux Folles, from the men of The Normal Heart to the women of Fun Home, and from Eva Le Gallienne and Tallulah Bankhead to Tennessee Williams and Nathan Lane .. chronicles the plays and people that brought gay culture to Broadway. 240 pages.

Photographs by Joan Marcus. Mixes clever cocktails that pay homage to unforgettable Broadway shows–such as the Rainbow High from Evita and the Sidecar Named Desire–with authentic recipes for drinks that played supporting roles in beloved shows–like the legendary Vodka Stinger from Company–and shakes it up with a history of the cocktail on Broadway. 30 drink recipes. Featured throughout are images from intoxicating images of classic shows to portraits of effervescent stage celebrities to vintage...

Chronicles the development of dance, with an emphasis on musicals and the Broadway stage, in the United States from its colonial beginnings to performances of the present day. 304 pages.

In the winter of 2002, Chechen terrorists entered the Dubrovka Theater in what became known as the Moscow Theater Hostage Crisis ... rebels would storm the stage and take the audience captive in an operation that lasted four days and claimed the lives of over 100 civilians. On that same night, at age 26, Broadway actress Meredith Patterson was less than one mile away at the MDM Theater, starring as Peggy Sawyer in 42nd Street with Boris Yeltsin in attendance. Second in series of books, followin...

Delves deeply into Shepard's life as well as the ways in which his work illuminates it. Takes readers through the world of downtown theater in Lower Manhattan in the early sixties; the jazz scene at New York's Village Gate; fringe theater in London in the seventies; Bob Dylan's legendary Rolling Thunder tour; the making of classic films Broadway productions. Greenfield interviewed dozens of people who knew Shepard well, many of whom had never before spoken on the record about him. While explori...

Play by Emma Donoghue. This updated and revised edition was published to coincide with the Broadway premiere in Spring 2023, which has been cancelled, so publishing may change. 96 pages. [A 2017 version is available on Amazon in Kindle format.]

Lavishly illustrated hands-on account of the creation of new theatre spaces spanning a century. A compelling history that is part memoir, part impassioned call to rethink the design of our theatre spaces and the future of live theatre. 256 pages.

An exploration of the cultural impact of Blanche DuBois, examining Tennessee Williams's most enduring creation through the performances of seven brilliant actresses who have taken on the role: Jessica Tandy, Vivien Leigh, Ann-Margret, Jessica Lange, Patricia Clarkson, Cate Blanchett, and Jemier Jackson. Exploring themes of womanhood, sexuality, mental illness, and the idealized South, Blanche is an engrossing cultural history of a rich and complex character that sheds light on who we are. Photo...

Beginning with the stage debut of Show Boat in 1927 and concluding with the release the Cabaret filmed nearly a half century later in 1972. Explores the symbiotic relationship between a dozen Broadway musicals and their Hollywood film adaptations. Engages with aesthetic and critical concerns while also considering the social issues around Broadway and Hollywood film through the lenses of race and ethnicity, class, gender, and sexual identity. 368 pages.

A unique view of the theater's backstage life, props, wardrobe collections and rehearsal spaces through unprecedented access to life behind the scenes. All captured by Angela Moore's photographs. 200 pages.

The author uses her life story to empower and encourage anyone seeking to find and live their best life with beauty, dignity and a grace that radiates from within. 172 pages.

Collection of play by Anna Ziegler. The Wanderers (opening February 2022 for Roundabout Theatre Company), The Great Moment, Another Way Home, Actually. 224 pages.

. "... argues that Sondheim firmly belongs to the Broadway aspirational tradition, in that many of his characters are defined by their dreams: to abandon one's dream (as Ben does in Follies, Frank does in Merrily We Roll Along, and Addison does in Road Show) is to lose one's soul. 192 pages.

Story of Denton's nytheatre.com website, which began in 1997. A journey of one man remaking himself, following his heart and his passion, and along the way helping to forge a new and stronger identity for the indie theater community that he loved.

Anna Ziegler play opening next month at Roundabout Theatre Company. 80 pages.

Examines the careers of seven award-winning playwrights: David Adjmi, Julia Cho, Jackie Sibblies Drury, Will Eno, Martyna Majok, Dominique Morisseau and Anna Ziegler. Covering all their plays, including several as yet unpublished, nothing their critical reception while drawing on their own commentary on their approach to writing and the business of developing a career. 256 pages.

Charts the histories of Cameron Mackintosh's eight refurbished and rebuilt iconic London buildings: their origins, their stories, the iconic shows and productions, the stars and the glamour. Lavishly illustrated with images from the Delfont Mackintosh archive, also contains original architect plans and drawings, specially commissioned photographs of the refurbishment, show posters and other theatre ephemera, and many sweeping panoramas of the exquisitely finished spaces. 320 pages.

Explores how ability, sexuality, and size intersect with gender, race, and ethnicity in casting and performance. Asks/answers "Why did A Chorus Line, a show that sought to individuate dancers, inevitably make them indistinguishable? How does the use of fat suits in musicals like Dreamgirls and Hairspray stigmatize fatness? What were the political implications of casting two straight actors as the gay couple in La Cage aux Folles in 1983? How did deaf actors change the sound of musicals in Deaf ...

In-depth look into the rise of the 1921 Broadway hit, Shuffle Along, the first all-Black musical to succeed on Broadway, with a score by Noble Sissle and Eubie Blake. Book by F. E. Miller and Aubrey Lyles. The story of how Sissle and Blake, along with comedians Flournoy Miller and Aubrey Lyles, overcame poverty, racism, and violence to harness the energy of the Harlem Renaissance. 512 pages.

By Priscilla Gilman, daughter of writer, theater critic, and Yale School of Drama professor Richard Gilman. 304 pages.

Memoir by motion picture, television, and Broadway producer Julian Schlossberg. Foreword by Elaine May. 374 pages.

"Diving deep into Hammerstein’s life, examining his papers and his lyrics, critic Laurie Winer shows how he orchestrated a collective reimagining of America, urging it forward with a subtly progressive vision of the relationship between country and city, rich and poor, America and the rest of the world. His rejection of bitterness, his openness to strangers, and his optimistic humor shaped not only the musical but the American dream itself. His vision can continue to be a touchstone to this day...

" ... philosophical-ish musings on connection, creativity, loss, love, faith, and closure." In each chapter: behind-the-scenes stories from Kristin's personal life; high-design, colorful pages of inspirational quotes; engaging prompts, prayers, and inspiring quotes. Bible verses and f-bombs. 224 pages.

Comprehensive guide expands the study of musical theatre to include the ways we practice and experience musicals, their engagement with technology, and their navigation of international commercial marketplaces. The first collection to include global musical theatre in each chapter, reflecting the musical's status as the world's most popular theatrical form. Brings together practice and scholarship, featuring essays by leading and emerging scholars alongside luminaries such as Chinese musical th...

"The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" (1900) by Frank L. Baum has served as the basis for some of the most popular musicals on stage and screen. Show by show, Bunch highlights the forms and conventions of musical work as practiced in its time and context–such as the turn-of-the-century extravaganza, the classical Hollywood film musical, the Black Broadway musical of the 1970s, and the twenty-first-century mega-musical. He then shows how the journey of each show teaches participants and audiences somethi...

For those new to musical theatre. History of musical theater and shows born on Broadway or the West End that became cultural phenomena; development of productions, from the idea stage all the way through opening night and beyond; insights into how theater is made; insider advice on the skills you need to perform in professional or amateur musical theater productions; anecdotes and show recommendations. 384 pages.

Play by Stephen Adly Guirgis. 120 pages.

The author "notes the gender and ethnic stereotypes that Streisand shattered as the first openly Jewish superstar, while concentrating not just on the cultural difference she made but on the internal differentials of her unholy vocal gift-whose kinetic volatility shapes a kind of cinematic terrain all its own." 252 pages.

Personal collection of interviews with the late Stephen Sondheim, conducted in the last years of the artist's life (unedited from the February 22 New Yorker article). Audio versions narrated by Christopher Grove and Keith Sellon-Wright. 240 pages.

Presents the broader organization, its creative methodology, and its enormous growth over the past 20 years. Tells the contemporary story, recorded over many interviews with iconic practitioners and performers ranging from Diane Paulus, Tony Kushner and Lynn Nottage to Kevin Kline, Chelsea Clinton and Lin-Manuel Miranda. Case-study driven, One Public uses oral history accounts and authorial experience to illuminate The Public Theater, Eustis and their cultural influence on the city of New York ...

Play by James Ijames. Winner of the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Premiere at Public Theater in May 2022. 112 pages.

In a follow-up to his memoir, Jack Be Nimble, the director collects stories from the many productions he has worked on; the great talents he encountered and collaborated with; and the choices that he made, on the stage and off, that have come to define his career. He tells his readers how to become a director–or, at the very least, relates an unfailingly honest story of how he did.

Vocal selections songbook for Broadway musical by Michael R. Jackson. Arranged for vocal line with piano accompaniment. "Boundaries," "Didn't Want Nothin'," "Exile in Gayville," "Inner White Girl," "Intermission Song," "Inwood Daddy," "Memory Song," "Periodically," "Precious Little Dream / AIDS Is God's Punishment," "Second Wave," "A Strange Loop," "A Sympathetic Ear," "Today," "Tyler Perry Writes Real Life," "We Wanna Know." 136 pages

Detailed history of one of the most beloved American murder-mysteries and comedies, Joseph Kesselring's Arsenic and Old Lace. Follows the actors, both on the stage and on the screen, as they handle the demands of the roles and behind-the-scenes relationships. 168 pages.

An original interpretation of Miller's work and his personality ... Organized around the fault lines of Miller's life–Miller's family, the Great Depression, the rise of fascism, Elia Kazan and the House Committee on Un-American Activities, Marilyn Monroe, Vietnam, and the rise and fall of Miller's role as a public intellectual. Demonstrates the synergy between Arthur Miller's psychology and his plays. Concentrating largely on Miller's most prolific decades of the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s, Lahr pr...

dited by David Leopold. Showcases 300 Hirschfeld drawings: his greatest theater work from five decades, including some of the most important productions from the last sixty years, plus portraits of Stephen Sondheim, Neil Simon, Edward Albee, Wendy Wasserstein, Tom Stoppard, and Hal Prince, and more. forward by Michael Kimmelman, and chapter introductions by Brooks Atkinson, Brendan Gill, Maureen Dowd, Terrence McNally and Jules Feiffer. Follow-up to The American Theatre As Seen by Hirschfeld, p...

Celebrating the 50th anniversary of Pippin. Dives deep into the legendary clashes, backstage drama, and incredible artistic synergy. An examination of the creative struggles between Pippin's director/choreographer, the iconic Bob Fosse, and Stephen Schwartz.

Play by Christopher Shinn. Premiered at Chichester Festival Theatre in August 2022.

By Janet Langhart Cohen, who wrote the play Anne & Emmett, which has been performed across the U.S. since 2007 (the play is also being published in paperback and Kindle format). An effort to reveal how some of the people the author has known and the seminal events she experienced enabled her to link together, in an imaginary conversation, the seemingly disparate lives of Anne Frank and Emmett Till, two iconic figures who were murdered by societies that couldn’t protect them.

Set of three plays by by Mona Mansour. Michael Malek Najjar and Hala Baki, editors. 176 pages.

Richly illustrated and information-packed celebration of Broadway set design. Many contributors, including John Lee Beatty, Danny Burstein, Cameron Crowe, Ethan Hawke, Moisés Kaufman, Carole King, Kenny Leon, Santo Loquasto, Kathleen Marshall, Lynn Nottage, David Rabe, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Wallace Shawn, John Leguizamo, and Robin Wagner. With personal sketches and photographs from the artists' archives. 272 pages.

Twenty-five years of diaries, from thoughts and insights on theater performances, the craft of acting, politics, friendships, work projects, and his general musings on life. 480 pages.

Looks at American history as depicted in forty Broadway musicals. Categories include: biographies of famous Americans, (Andrew Jackson and Fiorello LaGuardia), stories with national conflicts (Hamilton, South Pacific), events that captured the attention of the American public (Floyd Collins, Newsies), and sociological studies or satires of specific eras (The Music Man, Hair). Approaches American history from two vantage points: the point of view of the playwright and composer accompanied with t...

"From Babes In Toyland to Hamilton and Yank!, from Anything Goes to Follies, this book reviews original-cast, revival-cast, and studio-cast discs, discussing every element from the quality of performance to the quality of the sound." 528 pages.