During the early years of the twentieth century, the revue was a very popular entertainment form on Broadway and nationwide with regular touring productions. A notoriously difficult genre to define, revues were often topical in subject matter (perhaps politics or current events) or reflecting the current or just-past Broadway season (hence “review” or “revue”).Footnote 1 Some revues were tied together by a slim plot that linked the various elements, and others were simply a series of loosely connected skits, songs, and production numbers. As a genre, the revue has received little study, and what exists is not always of the highest quality.Footnote 2 Jonas Westover, in his well-researched and well-written book, The Shuberts and Their Passing Shows: The Untold Tale of Ziegfeld's Rivals, does a major service toward expanding our knowledge of the genre.
Westover's book puts the genre into the context of the period when it was most prevalent: the early years of the twentieth century. By focusing on the Passing Show series, specifically the 1914 edition of the series, Westover not only offers an overview of the genre but a deep exploration of the revues’ creation, function, and leading figures. Additionally, he provides important correctives to mythology surrounding Florenz Ziegfeld and the Shubert brothers, J. J. and Lee.
The Passing Show series was just one of many revues that the Shuberts produced at their theatre, the Winter Garden (primarily a revue house); collectively they were called Winter Garden shows. There also were other revues (not only at the Winter Garden) under the Shubert aegis, often sharing names or being renamed to appear to be a new show. Six of the book's nine chapters cover the process of creating the various Shubert revues; chapter by chapter, Westover assembles for us a Winter Garden show. Individual chapters examine specific elements of a production: producers and creative talent; on-stage talent, including chorus girls and boys; and the melding of song, dance, and scenic effects. Through these chapters, Westover shows that the consistency and continuity of staff was an important factor in the series’ continued success, noting that, “In developing a network of creative collaborators who knew each other well and could successfully and repeatedly create a show that impressed the critics and brought in audiences, J. J. and Lee built a theatrical model with a built-in flexibility that no other producers could match” (5). Chapters on backstage staff bookend this section. Winter Garden productions were advertised as being “under the direct supervision” of the Shubert Brothers; Westover points out that it was J. J. who “felt that the Winter Garden shows were his personal projects” (26). Equally important was Harold Atteridge, the man who made a Shubert revue a reality (“an all-purpose writer, responsible for the lyrics and the books of every edition of The Passing Show from its inception in 1912 until 1924…”) (12).
Three chapters concern what the public saw—casts, stars, and chorus line. Performers whose names are remembered today (e.g., Ed Wynn, Blanche Ring, Marilyn[n] Miller), along with others now known only by theatre historians, were often regulars at the Winter Garden for years. Others—including Charlotte Greenwood, Fred and Adele Astaire, and Fred Allen—benefitted from Passing Show appearances. The Howard Brothers, a popular vaudeville act who became stalwarts of the series, receive a chapter to themselves; although they are often mentioned in theatrical histories, they are yet to be studied in depth, as evidenced by the absence of a biography in this book's bibliography. Westover succinctly tells their story, relating who they were and why they are important to Broadway theatre history.
Chorus girls and boys, easily taken for granted by audiences and scholars alike, also receive chapter-length treatment. Musicals of all types inevitably relied not only on stars but also on choristers and, more so, on the legs of the chorus girls. Westover opens the chapter by quoting a letter from talent agent F.P. Wilstack to J. J. Shubert, “There is no mistaking one fact—The Passing Show is a leg show—and so, I take it the thing to do, is to let everyone know that we have legs and plenty of them” (87). He goes on to detail the role of both chorus girls and chorus boys in Passing Shows and in Broadway musicals generally. Choristers were eager to work for the Shuberts, as the success of these shows provided steady work. Unlike Ziegfeld, the Shuberts kept good records of all cast members (including choristers), and it is possible to know who these performers were, including one chorus girl from 1924 edition who went on to film stardom: Joan Crawford, as she eventually came to be known.
Combining both on- and off-stage realms, a final chapter on the components of a revue concentrates on song, dance, and scenic effects, and their creators. Sigmund Romberg stands out as the best-known name among Winter Garden composers. Westover explains the role and importance of the arranger—a less celebrated figure in the creation of a musical—quite well. Attention is also given to how songs were performed, noting that it was often to keep the show moving along rather than simply showcasing the song itself. Choreography often was the work of Ned Wayburn, who helped develop Fred and Adele Astaire in their early years and later choreographed for Ziegfeld and Theodore Kosloff.
Having provided this wealth of background, Westover focuses specifically on the 1914 edition of The Passing Show, which he recently reconstructed, providing an overview of the show's creation. This discussion provides a practical demonstration of how the disparate elements discussed in the preceding chapters came together to create this particular show and how they brought a Winter Garden show to fruition. Westover also explains how the “textual and musical references in The Passing Shows” (181) make it difficult to separate revues from their own time. Revues were expected to be au courant, thus the need for new ones every year; this ephemeral aspect results in scripts and songs being forgotten after the show closed. Revues are also difficult to revive because modern audiences are likely to know few, if any, of the topical references scattered throughout a revue. Unfortunately, many excellent songs that were good enough to deserve a life outside of their original setting have been forgotten as a consequence.
The final two chapters give exceptional insight into a segment of theatrical history related to the revue: perceptions of the Shuberts, Florenz Ziegfeld, and the rivalry between them. As Westover points out, over time, the name and character of Florenz Ziegfeld has come to define the revue as a genre. The Shuberts, George White, Earl Carroll, and many others have been overshadowed by the Ziegfeld Myth, given here a much-needed reassessment. Ironically, the Shuberts themselves were complicit in their own erasure, taking over the Ziegfeld name and franchise in cooperation with his widow, Billie Burke, and using it to define the type and quality of productions audiences would see. Over time films strengthened the Ziegfeld image. Westover also addresses the myth that the Shuberts were stingy, unpleasant, difficult to work with, and even abusive; early in the book, and in these later chapters, he does major work in correcting that. Finally, Westover offers a strong history of the “demise of a genre” (227), as popular taste moved away from the staged revue to other forms of entertainment, including film and television.
Photographs and other examples appear throughout the book; further reproductions (in color) can be found at the Oxford University Press website dedicated to the book. The two appendices are also a bonus: the first reproducing a skit from the 1915 edition and the second going into detail about the shape of 1914 show. Through these ancillary materials, the reader can gain a strong sense of the flavor of The Passing Show series and the revue format.
Jonas Westover's The Shuberts and Their Passing Shows provides not only a thorough understanding of The Passing Show of 1914 and the broader Passing Show series but also a historical context for these shows and for the revue. One hopes that this book can be a first step in new scholarly interest in the rich world of the musical revue. Westover has produced a fine model and an important first step in expanding such scholarship.
