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Broadway Theatrical Music
A theatre is no doubt an artistic work which plays an important role in a society. In this
light, a story has to be related to the targeted audience for it to be appreciated and loved. In the
same way, the relevance of a theatrical performance is drawn from the symbiotic relationship
with the society. Apparently, every era has been represented through people’s thoughts
throughout history as it reflects a particular occurrence in the society. This paper intends to
discuss the Broadway theatrical music, Chicago by John Kander and Lyrics by Fred Ebb and
Bob Fosse. The music is based on a 1926 play by the same name that was presented by Maurine
Dallas Watkins regarding factual crimes of the time she had reported. The original production of
this musical opened in 1975.
Although the actual plot of the music was back in the 1920s, various historical issues of
1970s are demonstrated through it. Primarily, Chicago presents a satire on corruption particularly
in the administration of the criminal justice of the time in the United States (Grode, 2017).
Additionally, the music brings the aspect of social issues in form of marriage, divorce, and
remarriage. Through this musical, the audiences are given insight regarding marriage during the
late 70s as an issue which was evolving (Everett & Laird, 2015). Moreover, Chicago proves
important as it depicts various issues such as premarital sex which had then become popular and,
therefore, insisted on the urgent need for a better protection as well as birth control. The main
aim of the music was to bring thematic issues affecting the society and advocating for a positive
change (Everett & Laird, 2015).
