Description
About the Author
ADRIAN WRIGHT is a performer, novelist and writer. His previous books with Boydell include A Tanner's Worth of Tune: Rediscovering the Post-War British Musical (2010), West End Broadway: The Golden Age of the American Musical in London (2012) and Must Close Saturday: The Decline and Fall of the British Musical Flop (2017). He has previously written on the subject of film music in his biography of William Alwyn, The Innumerable Dance (2008), and his fiction includes the Francis and Gordon Jones Mysteries series: The Voice of Doom, The Coming Day and Forget Me Not.
Reviews
Musical theatre scholars will appreciate Wright's painstaking documentation of American musicals in London during a key period in the genre's history. * THEATRE RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL *
It can be mighty difficult to find information on these titles, and here it is. 'West End Broadway' is perfect for browsing, packed as it is with things we never knew, and packed with photos as well. PLAYBILL, December 2013 * . *
Geared towards a popular audience interested in musical theatre, West End Broadway is an important book and offers significant cultural perspectives on the American musical. Because of its distinctive focus, it is also valuable to students and scholars of the genre. [...] This is the first book to address the transatlantic reception history of the American musical in a thorough and large-reaching fashion, and as such occupies a significant place in the historiography of the popular musical theatre. * MUSIC AND LETTERS *
With its heavy reliance on newspaper reviews of the period for descriptions, as well as deep mining of programme notes, cast sheets and other theatrical ephemera not easily available for most fans, this is a rewarding book. [...] West End Broadway [...] will become a definite research tool for this narrow yet popular subject. * TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT *
[A]n amusing and well-researched account [...] Although I suspect our taste and judgments on individual musicals often differ, Adrian Wright is consistently entertaining, and West End Broadway, being so comprehensive, is an essential reference book for anyone who loves musicals. * THE SPECTATOR *
[I]t is the kind of book you can pick up at any time [.] difficult to put down. [...] It is a worthy addition to any book shelf belonging to lovers of the musical theatre. I found it absolutely fascinating! * JOURNAL INTO MELODY (ROBERT FARNON SOCIETY) *
Book Information
ISBN 9781843837916
Author Adrian Wright
Format Hardback
Page Count 376
Imprint The Boydell Press
Publisher Boydell & Brewer Ltd
Weight(grams) 1g