I not a big fan of Broadway music after the earliest years, when it overlapped with pop.
But I’m down for a documentary on any kind of music. I’d probably watch the history of elevator music if it had good visuals.
PBS Broadway documentary – youtube – you can probably find a hi-res version online as well.
Narrated by Julie Andrews, this six-hour documentary features reels and reels of original footage from the stage and/or later Hollywood versions.
About the PBS Series
Broadway: The American Musical tells two stories: the 100-year history of musical theater and the story of its relationship to 20th-century American life. The six-part series begins with the immigrant experience at the turn of the century, when a melting pot of voices and styles gave rise to a popular new form of entertainment, and ends with today’s Broadway, where big-budget new productions and revivals of classic favorites compete side by side for box office success.
Read more at the PBS website – click here
PBS Broadway documentary – youtube
Photo: Daniel Evans’ 2016 production of the ground-breaking musical Showboat by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II.