William B. Gill : from the goldfields to Broadway / Kurt Ganzl.
| Author/creator | Gänzl, Kurt |
| Format | Book |
| Publication Info | New York ; London : Routledge, 2002. |
| Description | xii, 294 pages : illustrations, portraits, facsimiles ; 23 cm. |
| Subjects |
| Series | Forgotten stars of the musical theatre Forgotten stars of the musical theatre. ^A518488 |
| Contents | Who was Willie Gill? -- From the Goldfields to Melbourne (and back again) -- A comic star at home -- On the road to Calcutta -- Great varieties and greater expectations -- A sojourn in the American goldfields -- A Broadway debut and Colville's Folly Company -- Lots of Goblins and an international hit -- Plays made to order -- Adonis -- One failure after another -- From pantomime to sentimental comedy: Arcadia to Old Jed Prouty -- Star vehicles -- Last hits -- Final curtain. |
| Abstract | Canadian by birth, Australian by upbringing, William B. Gill trod the boards in the Australian goldfields and the hill-stations of India before going on to try his luck in America. After unpromising beginnings in the backwoods of Utah and Nevada, he scrambled chancily up the tree, to earn leading roles on Broadway as a comedian. He also produced a bundle of shows of his own writing, and before long his extravaganzas, comedies, and dramas were being seen all around America. Among these hits was the show that was to turn out to be the longest running American-made Broadway musical of the century: Adonis. As a straight parody of the Pygmalion legend--but with the sex roles switched, so that a beautiful, male statue comes to life--he play both parodied the excesses of melodrama and comic opera and celebrated them, and Adonis went on to a long life, countless revivals, and a place as a landmark in the history of American theater. Other hugely popular Gill plays and musicals followed Adonis until, with the new century, his style of rip-roaring writing went out of fashion, and Gill faded away into a century of forgottenness. |
| Bibliography note | Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| ISBN | 0415937671 |
Availability
| Library | Location | Call Number | Status | Item Actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Music | Closed Stacks - Ask at Circulation Desk | PS1744.G1165 Z72 2002 | ✔ Available | Place Hold |