Musical Chicago Biography

On this day, the Chicago Tribune newspaper published an article by journalist Maurin Dallas Watkins about a certain Belve Gertner, actress Varie, who killed her boyfriend.

At the trial, Gertner said she was so drunk that she did not remember how she shot a friend. As today, stories about sexual crimes were especially popular among readers. On the third of the year, another Watkins article was published, under the heading "The killer puts a plate with jazz while her victim dies." This time it was a married woman named Bul Annan, who shot her lover.

He died under the accompaniment of the Hula lou popular in the years of Foxtrot, to the same music, Bul told her husband about what had happened. The hype, accompanying these and other criminal stories, made a strong impression on Morin. Later, leaving the newspaper, she went to study the drama at Yale University. It was there, as a training task, that it was written by the play “Chicago”.

A teacher of theology of Yale University called Watkin's work “a vile, immoral and blasphemous”, but even he was forced to admit that the mores of that time were quite accurately described. Maurin not only received the highest score in the class for her work: on December 30, the play “Chicago” opened on Broadway. The play withstood the performances, the film of the same name was shot in the year, and the painting “Roxy Hart” directed by William Velman with Ginger Rogers in the title role was released.

Unfortunately, the play “Chicago” turned out to be the only noticeable work of Morin Dallas Watkins. Bob Fossi, the famous Broadway choreographer and director, known for his frank and sensual style, could not pass by such a plot. For the first time, he thought about the production in the mid -fifties, however, for a long time he could not settle the issue of rights. The case moved from a dead point only after the death of Maurin Dallas Watkins B, when Bob Fossi, Gwen Verdon and producer Richard Fraer were able to agree with the heirs of the writer.

To implement the project, Fossi attracted composer John Cander and librettist Fradu Ebba, who have already managed to conquer Broadway with their muscles “Kabare” and “Zorba”. In the Fossi Fores All that Jazz “All this vanity”, the Fossi Fossi is an episode in which the choreographer Joe Gideon after rehearsal occurs a heart attack. This episode is taken from the story of the production of Chicago, as well as the producers' attempt to invite the show of another director, in case the main character does not recover.

In real life, this person was the famous choreographer Jerome Robbins "Westsaid History", "Violinist on the roof." However, two months later, Fossi recovered from the disease and returned to rehearsals. The trials in the Chicago of the 10ths were part of the show business, in which there were their own impresario, stage, a system of stars and even their own observers-in the person of extremely subjective reporters.

This motive came to the forefront of the musical. The score of the Chicago is a brilliant stylization for American hits of the late 19ths. In those days, “vaudeville” was still popular - a variety of Variet. In it, along with singers, dancers and comedians, artists of the original genre performed - acrobats, strong men, transformers, trainers, illusionists and the like. It is curious that the main requirement for numbers was especially concerned with jokes and the sketches were their decent content.

According to the method of presenting musical material and its theme, “Chicago” is very close to this genre, it is not by chance that the show had a subtitle - “musical vaudeville”. Each song is announced as a separate number and, in fact, comments on events, and is not part of the plot, a similar technique is used in the musical “Kabar”. In addition, the play contains characters characteristic of vaudeville - a womb, a white clown, an actor depicting women.

The muscles of the “Kabar” and “Chicago” are interconnected not only by authors, but also by actors. The plot of the musical is as follows. The dancer of the cordobelet Roxy Hart cold -bloodedly kills his lover, Frad Kashley, after he made her understand that it was all over between them. Roxy manages to convince his husband Emos that the dead was a robber and received a well -deserved punishment.

Aimos takes guilty of himself, but it immediately turns out that Roxy and Frad were good, even too well familiar. Aimos gives Roxy to get out of the current situation. Roxy goes to prison, in one camera along with Velma, the star of the criminal chronicle, and other “funny murderers”. We will learn the history of Velma. Together with their sister and husband, they performed in vaudevilles with an acrobatic number.

Once she found her husband and sister “practicing” one of the tricks and shot both of them. One of the “funny killers”, a Hungarian girl by the name of Unyak, capable of pronouncing in English only “Nope, is not guilty! The Hungarian police says that I tied my husband and chopped off his head. But I did not do this, I am not guilty.I can’t believe that Uncle Sam says that I did it.

They say that I did it - but in fact I did not do this. " The overseer of the prison, Mom Monton, the Mother Matron, professes the principle of “mutual assistance” in relations with her wards. Her labors of Velma Kelly became the star of the criminal chronicle, and while she is waiting for the trial, “mother” Morton is busy with the organization of the tour, to which Velma will go out of prison.

Velma is not very happy about the appearance of Roxy, but the “mother” Morton hints the newly arrived, which can help her to get out, of course, is kindly. The release, or rather, the services of a sneaking lawyer Billy Flynn, will cost dollars. Aimos comes on a date to his unlucky wife and promises to get the money. The main weapon of Flynn is the impact on public consciousness by placing exposure articles in tabloids and clever overlapping of facts “upside down”.

These courts are all show business. But baby, you work with a great star, ” - this is his life credo. So in the case of Roxy - Billy invents a heartbreaking story in which Roxy appears to be a naive girl who became a victim of the temptations of a big city. Flynn arranges a press conference at which, among other journalists, there is Mary San Shain, the author of the criminal chronicle of the Ivoning Star newspaper.

A sentimental journalist, who believes that each has at least a little good, takes the story of Roxy for a pure coin. The role of Journalist Mary Sanshain is usually performed by a man - another curtsy towards the American vaudeville, where part of the program was the performance of the impersonator of women. Roxy enters the first pages of newspapers, finally pushing the noble, in which things are going very badly.

Velma offers Roxy together to perform with the number with which she once performed with her sister. But Roxy does not want to share his glory. However, the euphoria does not last long - the court in the Roxy case is postponed, and the popularity turns out to be fleeting - in the first lanes of newspapers they already write about the new killer. Now the position of the Roxy is no different from the position of the velice.

Roxy comes up with a new plan: she declares that she is pregnant. She is trying to tell Flynn, how would she behave in court if he had finally took place, but Billy was not up to her now. On the horizon, the husband of Roxy Eimos appears again, who considers himself the father of the child. Billy makes him understand that this is not entirely true. Aimos fits for divorce, which the lawyer sought to call the public an even greater pity for the defendant.

In court, Roxy says that her affair with Kesli began due to the fact that she was unhappy in marriage. When she nevertheless decided to break with Frad to keep her family, Kesley came to her and tried to rape her. During his speech, Roxy adheres to tactics, to which Velma was going to resort to. She even put on the shoes of her unsuccessful cellmate. Velma is indignant: “First, she steals my press, then a lawyer, after that - the date of the court and now the shoes!

The court recognizes the Roxy innocent, but this does not bring her joy - the acquittal is hardly announced, they forget about the Roxy. Aimos begs Roxy to return home, because at the trial she said that she loves him and they will have a child. In the final scene of the musical, the entertainer announces the debut of the “duet of two sparkling sinners”, the queen of the criminal world of Chicago, Velm Kelly and Roxy Hart.

They still made their way to show business! In the show, Lisa Minelli also played for a short time. When Verdon left the musical, her student and Fossi's protege, Ann Rinking, took her place. However, in the same year, the premiere of the musical took place, who pushed Chicago to the background. We are talking about the "cordeble" Marvin Hamlisha and Edward Kliban, who left the work of Cander and Ebba without awards from 12 nominations on Tony, the performance "Chicago" did not win a single echo of the season on Broadway, the "Cordobelet" was soon staged in London, while Chicago was opened in West Ende only in the year.

But this production already had nothing to do with the performance of Bob Fossi. After the performance on Broadway and the shows in West End, the show was closed and, perhaps, would have remained one of many underestimated musicals if Walter Bobby and choreographer Ann Rinking in the year had not been resumed. Bobby and Rinking did not seek to recreate Fossi's choreography, rather, a new performance was to be a dedication of the talented choreographer.

As a result, they got a show that could well belong to Bob Fossi, but his concept was different. The production was even more minimalistic and even more defiant. The authors proposed a show in its pure form - brilliant and cynical, without a hint of irony, allowing the public to look for hidden meanings and allusions in what is happening. The efforts of the directors were rewarded.

Four performances played in the City Center were accepted with such enthusiasm that the producers of the show decided to transfer the musical to Broadway.The performance opened in November, making a great impression on the public and criticism. The awards were not long in coming. In the year, the musical opened at the ADELPHI London Theater. The main characters were performed by comfort Lemper and Ruti Henshol.

The performance was enthusiastically met by spectators and criticism. Oddly enough, the topic of the musical did not cease to be relevant. What seemed to be a gloomy satire in x has now become part of the everyday life of the Americans. The process in the case of O. Simpson or, say, the scandalous story of Monica Levinsky is this confirmation. Thanks to television and the press, they entered every house and turned into an exciting Reality Show.

Now, instead of shocking the viewer, Chicago characters invite him to a dangerous but seductive world of scandalous stories and manipulating public consciousness.