Mason Hess

FA-1090
Tess Boone
October 11, 2015
Jamming on 42nd Street
For my second formal analysis, I chose to see the musical, 42nd Street. Though this
musical has many artistic elements and is composed of numerous methods of entertainment and
expression, I will focus on the musical elements for the purposes of this analysis. The show was
put together by the production group Broadway Across America at the Capitol Theatre here in
downtown salt lake on September 22. It was an easy choice because my friends have been
telling me about it for years so I have been kind of dying to see it. The musical tells the story of
an aspiring actress named Peggy. Upon the beginning of the performance, Peggy is
unfortunately late and misses her shot to audition for her role. She is soon scouted out by a big
time director and becomes an understudy for the star, who is on the latter end of her career. The
story soon becomes magical as the female lead is injured and Peggy finally gets her big shot and
eventually becomes a star.
It was important to me to identify the ways in which the music was separate from the rest
of the artistic elements in the performance, not because I didnt want to enjoy the rest, but simply
for the purposes of this analysis paper. I wanted to identify the ways the music grabbed me, so
many times throughout the performance, I would close my eyes in attempts to feel the song and
the emotion that the singers and writers were trying to convey. Some of the most beautiful,
moving and momentous musical moments I have ever had have been in the audiences of

musicals like Wicked, Newsies, and the Wizard of Oz. 42nd street was no different as
nearly every musical element was captivating. To avoid the review process and proceed onto the
analysis, I would first like to identify the feeling at the beginning of the production. In the
overture alone, the tempo, energy and rhythm emanate a would-be sense of accomplishment and
overcoming in the story. As the smooth, flowing melody takes you on the beginning of a wild
ride, you feel like things are going to happen, for someone, at some point in the future, if that
makes sense.
The pace consistently changes throughout the production. Though the speed, tempo and
rhythm all variate from song to song, the common theme never changes and the imminent feeling
of the breakthrough just being around the corner takes hold of the listeners ears and heart. As
the jam level gets increased in pieces like 42nd street and the reprise of the same song and dance,
we hear and feel the true monumentality of the work and group effort being put together to
express the victorious triumph as a host of dancers, singers and instruments collaborate to
emphasize this emotion and expression. It was also in this section of the musical performance
that recognized the spatial elements of music. As a multitude of personalities, voices and minds
were in collaboration to create the ultimate harmonious number, they created a near molecular
state of mind. As every voice contributed it was easy to notice that the writers/choreographers or
composers could see that there was only enough space to use so many voices. If there were any
more contribution to the piece, it may have been intolerable due to a jumbled vocal mess but the
composer recognized this beforehand and created the perfect mixture and collaboration.
It was extremely difficult to keep from uniting the artistic elements of dance and music.
Closing my eyes helped, but I soon realized that in a work like this, it is nearly impossible to
separate the two because together, they create such an emphatic and dynamic duo with such a

punch that drives the audience to a confusing notion of ridiculous empathy, jealousy, happiness
and feelings of promise and hope. It was amazing to see how the two different styles work
together using the same elements and characteristics of elements to seriously get the job done by
manufacturing these emotions and feelings through the shared tempo, melody, rhythm, space,
movement and energy! With that said, the music is what impacted the most and drove the point
across.
Back to the music, Lullaby of Broadway was the clincher. Not the lead singer, the male
portrays his tune and melody in such a manner that captures the very emotion of the title of the
song. The piece truly begins as a lullaby of sorts as it begins to draw the listener in with huge
chunks of pay dirt in the form of a voiced passion for a place and a time that was right there and
right then right in front of them all. Just as one feels like it is a slower, more lazy Susan type of
song, the tempo picks up and generates the final crescendo as the rest of the performance is
dominated by an enthusiastic and fast paced tempo with a wild energy that gives courage to both
the characters in the story, and the audience.
Throughout the production, I was enthralled. I could not help but gain appreciation for
the relationships between the artistic elements and styles. The work itself was obviously
amazing, but in avoidance of a review, I will stay with that. Beforehand, I thought it would be
difficult to separate and recognize the artistic elements of just the musical part of the production,
but as the show progressed, I was able to identify, not only the different artistic elements and
how they were used, but the differences between them being used in different styles of artistic
expression (i.e. dance and music). The overall feeling and emotion of the piece that was
generated by the courageous mood, the variating tempos and rhythms, and the energy that
matched on all levels, was that of promise, hope and breakthrough. The notions were carried out

thoroughly and correctly in my mind as the writers, producers, choreographers and everyone in
participation of this production were on top of their game. As new territories are discovered and
learned about, these lasting pieces will always be a part of our artistic expression. 42nd street is
one of these lasting works of art with themes and elements that can be modeled after for decades
and centuries to come.