MUS 391 - The 20th-Century American Musical (Honors)

3 Credit(s)

The American musical is a distinctively American art form that took shape during the first half of the 20th century. Throughout the century, it developed and evolved, reflecting events and changes in American society and culture. This course considers selected American musicals through the lens of entertainment, identity, ethnicity, and genre. Using original literary texts as a point of departure, students examine the transformation of these works from play, novel, or short story to musical, and determine how music and lyrics serve, ignore, or contradict the dramatic themes and ideas. Students who have taken MUS 390 may not receive credit for this course.