The Happiest Corpse I've Ever Seen - (History of the Broadway Musical) by Ethan Mordden (Hardcover)

About the Book

A gimlet-eyed look at the last gasp of the Broadway musical

Book Synopsis

For Ethan Mordden, the closing night of the hit musical, 42nd St. sounded the death knell of the art form of the Broadway musical. After that, big orchestras, real voices, recognizable books and intelligent lyrics went out the window in favor of cats, helicopters, yodeling Frenchmen, and the roof of the Paris Opera. Mordden takes us through the aftermath of the days of the great Broadway musical. From the long-running Cats to Miss Saigon, Phantom, and Les Miserables, to gems like The Producers, he is unsparing in his look at the remains of the day. Not content to scold the shows' creators, Mordden takes on the critics, too, splaying their bodies across the Great White Way like Sweeney Todd giving a close shave. Once more, it's "curtain going up," but Mordden is not applauding.

Review Quotes

"...breezy, witty, and intelligent look at a decade that brought us such memorable and groundbreaking shows..." --Howard Miller, Library Journal, on One More Kiss

"For musical theater lovers in general, it's a fast and energetic read, yet a staggeringly smart and complete one." --Marc Miller, TheaterMania.com, on One More Kiss

"...the book sings with stylish syncopation and chatty humor..." --Publishers Weekly on Open a New Window

"...as intelligent and enlightening as its predecessors..." --Booklist on Open a New Window

"Mordden presents a decade of radical change with both the wit and scholarship that characterized his earlier books." --Library Journal on Open a New Window

About the Author

Ethan Mordden is the author of many books on the Broadway musical including One More Kiss: The Broadway Musical in the 1970's (Palgrave Macmillan).