Introduction

Plays set to music have been around for centuries.  What started in ancient Greece and Rome can be traced through the minstrel’s of the middle ages and into the 1800s as operettas and French Vaudevilles.  It wasn’t until the 1920s, that the American Broadway style caught worldwide popularity.  Composers like Gershwin, Rodgers and Hart, and Irving Berlin transformed the musical comedy into a full production and caught the attention of Great Britain (Kenrick).  

Musical comedies also appeared and developed in Canada at this time.  With the development of the trans-Canada railroad, touring companies from both Great Britain and the United States brought musicals into the country.  In the 1920’s, musicals that entertained soldiers were especially popular.  Musicals were a way to improve morale in the front lines of war. (Charlottetown Festival, Dumbells).  This is evident in musicals such as “Billy Bishop Goes To War”, and “Oh, What a Lovely War”.  War has characterized much of musical culture in Canada.

The musical comedy culture in Canada began as early as the 1700s, but what really made the genre explode was the [insert hyperlink] Charlottetown Festival in 1964 in Prince Edward Island (Charlottetown Festival).  Many Canadian musicals were featured there with “Anne of Green Gables” which occurred year after year of the festival.  Some of the festivals that originated at Charlottetown have since moved on to Broadway in New York City.

This exhibit will focus on a few musical pieces that may not be originally Canadian but have found their way into this collection and made an impact on Canadian musical culture.  It will focus on the connections the musical world has made between Canada and where the popular American Broadway began.