Oscar Hammerstein Broaden The Boundaries Of The Musical

Today many people are familiar with the musicals South Pacific, The Sound Of Music, Oklahoma! and Carousel but do they know their origins? All of these plays were engineered by the dynamic due Oscar Hammerstein and Richard Rodgers who worked to broaden the boundaries of theater by merging theatre, music and film. Not only were they responsible for making their own plays but they formed musical scores, worked as lyricists, owned and operated the publishing company Williamson Music, and had their own careers prior to their collaboration.
Oscar Hammerstein started his life in Manhattan on July 12th, 1895. Born to his parents, Alice Nimmo and William Hammerstein, Oscar was immediately exposed and immersed into theatrical life. Although his family
Although he struggled to maintain this balance he and Dorothy remained married until his death. As time went on, Hart became a less dependable business partner placing more pressure and strain on Rodgers to complete the works. Finally, in 1943 Hammerstein and Rodgers teamed up and released their musical Oklahoma! on Broadway. However, both the audience members and producers were very skeptical and worried about how this adaptation would turn out. In agreement, Alyson McLamore says that “The deck seemed stacked against Oklahoma! in a number of ways. Hart didn’t think Lynn Riggs’s original play, Green Grow the Lilacs, was a suitable property for a musical, and this disagreement was the final wedge in breaking up Rodgers and Hart’s long-term partnership. Hammerstein had heard a similarly discouraging opinion from Jerome Kern. Although both Rodgers and Hammerstein were convinced that the play had the potential to be an effective musical show, it was unnerving for them to hear such negative views from partners they trusted” (241). Unfortunately, they were not the only ones who doubted the unusual
Hischak states that “The success of Oklahoma! in 1943 was a surprise to everyone, including its creators. Word around the theatre district was far from favorable, with most believing Hammerstein was past his prime, the producing Theatre Guild on its last legs financially, and Rodgers without Hart was a suicidal move. Rodgers and Hammerstein had no intentions of breaking new ground and coming up with a landmark, but in their efforts to remain true to their concept of a fully integrated musical play, that is just what they did” (xxxiv). Although Rodgers and Hammerstein had finally collaborated together in the beginning it was doubtful that they would remain a team until Lorenz Hart passed away in 1943 opening the door for the two to become business