During the early 20th century, musical theater on Broadway was either Vaudeville or spectacular song-and-dance revues like the Ziegfield Follies. In 1936 Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein took a chance and created Show Boat, a musical play about ordinary people dealing with racial prejudice. They included wonderful songs that are still being sung today, like “Old Man River.” Oscar Hammerstein went on to collaborate with Richard Rodgers, composing the songs from Broadway musicals that we all grew up singing.
On Monday, January 13, at noon, we’ll learn about the Broadway musicals of 1936–1957, their focus on racism, bullying, the changing roles of women in our culture and, of course, love in all its forms. We’ll sing together some of the Broadway songs that influenced the social changes we lived through in the 1960s. Come share the fun of songs from Oklahoma, Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I and more!
Susan Borg has been performing as a singer, teaching singing, and directing choral groups since graduating from Middlebury College more than 50 years ago. She is currently the choir director for the Midcoast UU Fellowship.
**A new venue! Located right in the heart of our Coastal Senior College service area, in the Historic Downtown Village District of Waldoboro, The BugTussle Annex occupies the entire third floor of the Jefferson Street Professional Building. There is full ADA-compliant access, with an elevator and plenty of public parking.