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Special Topics in Musical Theatre (350-0-23)

Topic

Racial Histories of the Broadway Musical

Instructors

Afua A Osseo - Asare

Meeting Info

University Library 3322: Thurs 9:00AM - 11:50AM

Overview of class

In this course we will listen for a multiplicity of histories of the Broadway musical as rendered in the accounts and contributions of musical theatre artists of color. We will center the authorship of Black, Latine, Indigenous and Asian American musical theatre creators in order to understand the contexts within which these artists operated and the narratives about race, music, and identity they worked to sustain or revise. In addition to the work of writers, composers, choreographers, etc., our studies will address the way that performers of color have maneuvered within the "tight spaces" of stereotypical songs, dances, and shows to exercise authority over their own performances. We will engage work in critical musical theatre studies by scholars including Daphne Brooks, Fred Moten, Shane Vogel, Donatella Galella, Alexandra T. Vazquez, and Brian Herrera, and musical theatre artists such as Bert Williams, Ethel Waters, Sono Osato, Pat Suzuki, Chita Rivera, André De Shields, Graciela Daniele, David Henry Hwang, George C. Wolfe, Kirsten Childs, Ty Defoe, Michael R. Jackson, and Lin-Manuel Miranda.