The Drowsy Chaperone Study Guide - Theatre Under The Stars
The Drowsy Chaperone Study Guide - Theatre Under The Stars
The Drowsy Chaperone Study Guide - Theatre Under The Stars
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“It does what a musical is supposed to<br />
do: it takes you to another world. And<br />
it gives you a little tune to carry in<br />
your head, you know? A little something<br />
to take you away from the dreary<br />
horrors of the real world. A little<br />
something for when you’re feeling blue.<br />
You know?”<br />
15<br />
Man in Chair, from <strong>The</strong> <strong>Drowsy</strong> <strong>Chaperone</strong><br />
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Drowsy</strong> <strong>Chaperone</strong> is a celebration of the healing powers of theatre.<br />
As we’ve seen, after World War I, the world was tired of the “dreary horrors<br />
of the real world.” <strong>The</strong> musical theatre of the 1920s was an answer to that<br />
weariness. Audiences did not come to the theatre for realism, they came<br />
to be transported; they came for spectacle, for fascinating characters,<br />
clever lyrics and melodies you would always remember. <strong>The</strong>y came for a<br />
happy ending. In real life and in his stage persona as Man in Chair, Bob<br />
Martin longs for the days when musicals had the funny, absurd and joyous<br />
atmosphere that <strong>The</strong> <strong>Drowsy</strong> <strong>Chaperone</strong> matches so perfectly.<br />
What about you? How do you feel about musical theatre? Is <strong>The</strong> <strong>Drowsy</strong><br />
<strong>Chaperone</strong> the first musical you’ve ever seen? Can theatre heal and restore<br />
today, as it did in the 1920s?