Musical Notes: A Practical Guide to Staffing and Staging Standards of the American Musical Theater

“As the subtitle states, this is a `practical guide to staffing and staging' 140 works of the American musical theatre that are presently available for both professional and nonprofessional presentation ... written with clarity for easy comprehension, each entry provides: name of shows, authors, composers, lyricists; original source; information on original production, cast roster; and in-depth synopsis; musical numbers by type and voice; notes on previous productions; a listing of songs of special interest; and production instrumentation. This content alone earns this volume a prominent position in the libraries of theatre workers, historians and organizations with concern for musical theatre. Very worthwhile appendixes include: song charts by form, voice, tempo, and type/emphasis; chronology (1915 to present) and listing of long runs; bibliography; sources for scripts, scores, and licenses; index of songs and production source; and an index of leading professional musical theatre workers and their specialities ... This volume is both broadening and professionally focused. As such it is an essential resource for secondary school, college, university, and public libraries....”–Choice

“This compendium provides information to help amateur groups choose musicals to produce and singers to find songs to present. The author, a professor at the University of New Hampshire who specializes in music theatre, hopes to call attention to lesser-known shows worthy of consideration as well as standards like Hello, Dolly! and Guys and Dolls. Plays are arranged in the main section alphabetically by title.... Musical Notes, with 145 entries, is aimed at making the task of choosing musical productions/numbers more convenient, comprehensive, and informed. As such, it will be useful in high school, public, academic, and performing arts collections. The contents are somewhat broader than the subtitle suggests, and patrons with more general interests in American musical theatre may find this book an appealing source in which to browse or to seek answers to specific questions.”–Reference Books Bulletin

“The entries in this `Guide' are arranged alphabetically, providing information on authorship and original production, a substantial synopsis of the story-line, notes on the production of the show (which include Tony Awards, ideas on technical and costume requirements, possible pitfalls, and budget suggestions), a list of songs of special interest, and details of instrumentation. A supplementary section on `Concept, Rock, Nostalgia and Others' differs from the main body of entries in providing abbreviated overviews rather than detailed synopses. Appendixes on "Music Theatre Annual' and `Chronology of Long-Running Musicals' present, respectively, a chronological listing of productions from 1915 to 1985 and a listing of those productions with the lengthiest tenure both on and off Broadway. The great virtue of the volume is its eye to use, to putting on the shows, and so further appendixes list songs and their performance requirements for use in workshop or class study, and compile addresses of licensing agencies and specialist stores. In addition to a substantial bibliography, the volume concludes with indexes to shows and their years of production, songs and their sources, and professionals and their specialities. It would be difficult to imagine a more thorough or more useful guide to mounting a musical production: this volume ensures that the shows will go on.”–The Year's Work in English Studies