Abstract

The mythology of the integrated musical has dominated discourse in musical theatre since the triumphant success of Rodgers & Hammerstein with Oklahoma! in 1943. Since then the ideology of integration has been indelibly linked to the oeuvre of Rodgers and Hammerstein and anticipated in the subsequent canon of more recent collaborators. Typical narratives (Block, Mast, Lahr, Steyn, Swain, Everett & Laird) evoke a ‘before’ and ‘after’ mythology in which standards of value, maturity and artistry have been established, often denigrating the pre-war period of writing, during which rare works (Showboat; the Princess Shows) seem to stand out as exceptions to the otherwise prevailing superficiality of musical comedy. Yet Rodgers’ previous collaboration with Lorenz Hart, which spanned the inter-war period, reveals a committed attitude to developing the ‘integrity’ of musical theatre, and aside from the acknowledged classics in their repertoire, several more experimental works stand out: not least Peggy-Ann (1926) and Chee-Chee (1928). This paper will seek to revisit the existing narrative of musical theatre and explore the influence of Rodgers and Hart on the development of the integrated musical, focussing particularly on the little known ‘castration musical’, Chee-Chee.