1950's
"The Sound of Music"
1959 | Rodgers and Hammerstein
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Story
The Sound of Music is about a young Austrian woman studying to become a nun in Salzburg in 1938 who is sent to the home of a retired naval officer and widower to be governess to his seven children. After bringing love and music into the lives of the family through kindness and patience, she marries the officer and together with the children they find a way to survive the loss of their homeland through courage and faith.
Broadway Production
The original Broadway production opened in 1959 and won five Tony Awards, including Best Musical.
Movie Production
The movie Sound of Music was released in 1965. It starred Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer.
Movie Trailer
Songs
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"The Sound of Music"In the title song, “The Sound of Music,” Maria is introduced in her place of refuge – outdoors, in her familiar hills. This is where she goes to have solitude, to contemplate her life. She begins with: “My day in the hills has come to an end, I know” – she knows she has to get back to the Abbey, where she is a new novice studying to be a nun.
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"My Favorite Things"A "list" song celebrating a wide variety of subjects familiar to an Austrian child, the piece is a lilting waltz, alternating from minor key to major key.
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"So Long, Farewell"
The Von Trapp children perform this song at a big party at their house. They sing it to say goodnight to the guests.
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"The Lonely Goatherd"
This song tells the whimsical story of a goatherd whose yodeling is heard from far off and by passers-by, until he falls in love with a girl who wears a pale-pink coat, with her mother joining in the yodeling.
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"Do-Re-Mi"
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"Sixteen Going on Seventeen"
Oldest child Liesl, who tells Maria “I don’t need a governess,” is “Sixteen Going On Seventeen.” Enchanted by a local boy named Rolf, who is a year older, Liesl plays along as he boasts about his relative experience and maturity.
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"Guys and Dolls"
1950 | Frank Loesser
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Story
Considered by many to be the perfect musical comedy, Guys and Dolls ran for 1,200 performances when it opened on Broadway in 1950. Nathan Detroit is New York’s most infamous dice game organizer. Hoping to win a lot of money, he challenges notorious gambler Sky Masterson to a bet he’s sure he’ll win: Sky has to take Sarah Brown to dinner in Havana, Cuba. Sky accepts the bet and convinces Sarah to go to Cuba with him. Meanwhile, Nathan deals with his own situation - his 14-year fiancée, Adelaide, who’s tired of waiting for a wedding.
Broadway Production
Considered by many to be the perfect musical comedy, Guys and Dolls ran for 1,200 performances when it opened on Broadway in 1950.
Movie Production
Guys and Dolls is a 1955 musical film starring Marlon Brando, Jean Simmons, Frank Sinatra and Vivian Blaine.
Songs
"Sit Down, You're Rocking the Boat"
*** student favorite ***
*** student favorite ***
Gambler Nicely-Nicely Johnson invents a dream about being saved from evil in order to bring together the members of the prayer meeting.
"Guys and Dolls"This is the opening song of the show. The men are singing about all the things they do for dolls "ladies".
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"Fugue for Tinhorns"
*** student favorite *** "Fugue for Tinhorns," the opening number from Frank Loesser's musical Guys and Dolls, is a fugue trio about the joys of betting on horseracing.
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"Adelaide's Lament"
*** student favorite *** Adelaide alternates between reading sentences aloud from a pop psychology book and commenting on what she is reading. Adelaide realizes that her constant common cold may actually be caused by never getting married to Nathan.
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"Luck Be a Lady"
The lyrics relate the point of view of Sky Masterson, who hopes that he will win a bet, the outcome of which will decide whether or not he is able to save his relationship with the girl of his dreams, Sarah Brown.
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