Historical Dictionary of the Broadway Musical

This title in the Historical Dictionaries of Literature and the Arts series provides a wealth of information on musical Broadway. A chronology covers from 1866—when The Black Crook, one of the first important Broadway musicals, opened—to 2006. This is followed by an introduction that describes the evolution of the form. The main part of the dictionary consists of nearly 1,000 entries arranged alphabetically by person, show title, or subject, from Aarons, Alexander (a producer who worked with George and Ira Gershwin) to Zorba the Greek. Entries for musicals provide date and place of opening, number of performances, and credits, such as composer, lyricist, and director. In addition, they may contain a brief plot summary, highlights, and references to reviews. An appendix of winners of the Tony Award for Best Musical, 1949–2006, and a categorized, annotated bibliography complete the volume. There are a number of other reference sources on Broadway musicals. Broadway: Its History, People, and Places; An Encyclopedia (Routledge 2003) has few entries for individual shows but offers detailed histories of theaters, which are not found in the Scarecrow work. Broadway Musicals, 1943–2004 (McFarland, 2005) has entries only for shows and encompasses a shorter time span, although it covers shows in greater detail. Historical Dictionary of the Broadway Musical complements these works and is recommended for public and academic libraries. –Patricia Hogan