A selection of Act Two first songs from musicals published by Creative Horizons

Like Agatha Christie and Raymond Chandler, Sara Paretsky and Thomas Harris, you, too, can learn the trade secrets of quality detective fiction. It's true. Just one year from now, you can deliver a completed mystery novel to a publisher--by writing only on weekends. Authors Robert J. Ray and Jack Remick guide you through the entire mystery-writing process, from creating a killer to polishing off the final draft. Each weekend you'll focus on a specific task--learning the basics of novel-writing, the special demands of mystery-writing, and the secrets professionals use to create stories one scene at a time, building to a shivery, satisfying climax. Using Agatha Christie's The Body in the Library as a model for the classical mystery tale and Martin Cruz Smith's Gorky Park for the hard-boiled mystery, this unique step-by-step program gives you all the information you need to reach your ultimate goal: a finished book in just 52 weeks! Let two successful masters of the genre show you how... Discover: Why you must create your killer first The tricks to writing dialogue that does it all--moves your plot, involves your reader, and makes your style sizzle How to "bury" information (and corpses) for your reader to find Why you should NOT build your book around chapters Special techniques for clearing writer's block Plus: examples from Sue Grafton, Dashiell Hammett, Patricia Cornwell, Thomas Harris, Raymond Chandler, and more.

This book surveys Broadway's biggest flops, highlighting almost 200 musicals created between 1950 and 1990. Framed around the notorious musical adaptation of Carrie, this book examines the reasons for their failure.

The glorious tradition of the Broadway musical from Irving Berlin to Jerome Kern and Rodgers and Hammerstein to Stephen Sondheim. And then . . . Cats and Les Miz. Mark Steyn's Broadway Babies Say Goodnight is a sharp-eyed view of the whole span of Broadway musical history, seven decades of brilliant achievements the best of which are among the finest works American artists have made. Show Boat, Oklahoma!, Carousel, Gypsy, and more. In an energetic blend of musical history, analysis, and backstage chat, Mark Steyn shows us the genius behind the 'simple' musical, and asks hard questions about the British invasion of Broadway and the future of the form. In this delicious book he gives us geniuses and monsters, hits and atomic bombs, and the wonderful stories that prove show business is a business which -- as the song goes --there's no business like.

In its 114th year, Billboard remains the world's premier weekly music publication and a diverse digital, events, brand, content and data licensing platform. Billboard publishes the most trusted charts and offers unrivaled reporting about the latest music, video, gaming, media, digital and mobile entertainment issues and trends.

This volume in the Routledge Key Guides series provides a round-up of the fifty musicals whose creations were seminal in altering the landscape of musical theater discourse in the English-speaking world. Each entry summarises a show, including a full synopsis, discussion of the creators' process, show's critical reception, and its impact on the landscape of musical theater. This is the ideal primer for students of musical theater – its performance, history, and place in the modern theatrical world – as well as fans and lovers of musicals.

In the first decade of the twenty-first century, Broadway was notable for old-fashioned, feel-good shows (Hairspray, Jersey Boys), a number of family-friendly musicals (Little Women, Mary Poppins), plenty of revivals (Follies, Oklahoma!, Wonderful Town), a couple of off-the-wall hits (Avenue Q, Urinetown), several gargantuan flops (Dance of the Vampires, Lestat), and a few serious productions that garnered critical acclaim (The Light in the Piazza, Next to Normal). Unlike earlier decades which were dominated by specific composers, by a new form of musical theatre, or by numerous British imports, the decade is perhaps most notable for the rise of shows which poked fun at the musical comedy form, such as The Producers and Spamalot. In The Complete Book of 2000s Broadway Musicals, Dan Dietz examines in detail every musical that opened on Broadway from 2000 through the end of 2009. This book discusses the era’s major successes, notorious failures, and musicals that closed during their pre-Broadway tryouts. In addition to including every hit and flop that debuted during the decade, this book highlights revivals and personal-appearance revues with such performers as Patti LuPone, Chita Rivera, and Martin Short. Each entry contains the following information: Plot summary Cast members Names of all important personnel, including writers, composers, directors, choreographers, producers, and musical directors Opening and closing dates Number of performances Critical commentary Musical numbers and the performers who introduced the songs Production data, including information about tryouts Source material Tony awards and nominations Details about London and other foreign productions Besides separate entries for each production, the book offers numerous appendixes, including a discography, filmography, and published scripts, as well as lists of black-themed shows and Jewish-themed productions. This comprehensive book contains a wealth of information and provides a comprehensive view of each show. The Complete Book of 2000s Broadway Musicals will be of use to scholars, historians, and casual fans of one of the greatest decades in musical theatre history.