No. 3. “Oklahoma!”

Oklahoma! (1943). Music by Richard Rodgers, Lyrics and Book by Oscar Hammerstein II. Based on the play Green Grow the Lilacs by Lynn Riggs

After his success with Show Boat Oscar Hammerstein spent the 1930s continuing to write operettas. Richard Rodgers spent the 1930s writing popular, urbane musical comedies with Lorenz Hart. They came together in 1943, as two sides of the musical theater coin. It proved to be an ideal partnership. Hammerstein’s dramaturgical integrity pushed Rodgers to compose more sweeping and varied music tied to specific characters and situations. Rodgers’ more colloquial music allowed Hammerstein to write more naturalistic material for homespun characters. And they reinvented the musical in the process. In Oklahoma! Rodgers and Hammerstein adapted a modestly successful play by using singing and dancing to support and enhance the story and its themes. The songs in Oklahoma! further the plot, and enrich one’s understanding of the characters singing them, creating a fully integrated musical play. And unlike Show Boat, which was recognized as innovative but ended up being a bit of a one-off, Oklahoma! set a new model of musical theater writing that quickly became standard practice.

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