Race, Sexuality, and Gender and the Musical Screen Adaptation

Hollywood’s conversion to sound in the 1920s created an early peak in the film musical, following the immense success of The Jazz Singer. The opportunity to synchronize moving pictures with a soundtrack suited the musical in particular, since the heightened experience of song and dance drew attention to the novelty of the technological development. Until the near-collapse of the genre in the 1960s, the film musical enjoyed around thirty years of development, as landmarks such as The Wizard of Oz, Meet Me in St. Louis, Singin’ in the Rain, and Gigi showed the exciting possibilities of putting musicals on the silver screen. The second of three volumes, Race, Sexuality, and Gender and the Musical Screen Adaptation: An Oxford Handbook, traces how the genre of the stage-to-screen musical has evolved, focusing in particular of issues of race, gender and sexuality. Enduringly popular adaptations such as Kiss Me Kate and Pal Joey are considered through the lens of identity, while several chapters consider how different adaptations of the same stage musical reflect shifting historical contexts. Together, the chapters incite lively debates about the process of adapting Broadway for the big screen and provide models for future studies. Volume I: The Politics of the Musical Theatre Screen Adaptation Volume II: Race, Sexuality, and Gender and the Musical Screen Adaptation Volume III: Stars, Studios, and the Musical Theatre Screen Adaptation