Nothing Like a Dame: Conversations with the Great Women of Musical Theater Author: Visit Amazon's Eddie Shapiro Page | Language: English | ISBN:
0199941203 | Format: PDF
Nothing Like a Dame: Conversations with the Great Women of Musical Theater Description
Review
"A fascinating and remarkably authentic collection of conversations with theatre aristocracy." --John Kander
"This book is an encyclopedia of modern musical theatre via a series of tender meetings between a diehard fan and his idols. Because of Eddie Shapiro's utter guilelessness, these women open up and reveal more than they ever have before, and we get to be the third guest at each encounter." --Alan Cumming
"Eddie Shapiro has woven together an insightful, inspiring and truly revelatory collection of interviews with these legends of musical theatre. It is an honor to hear personal stories from these incredible women on their creative process and the shows they have graced." --Daryl Roth
"For those who are interested in knowing about the inner lives of the great ladies of the theater, this is the book for you." --Graciela Daniele
"A wonderful collection of interviews that are honest, comprehensive and fascinating. What a treasure to hear all these extraordinary women tell their stories in their own words!" --Kathleen Marshall
"Shapiro states that he wanted to create a tapestry, an oral history, of the last 60 years of American musical theater, and he has succeeded...Highly recommended for readers who are interested in the theater, women performers, and those who dream of being on Broadway." -- Library Journal
"[Falling] somewhere between a
reference book and my fantasy version of People magazine from a parallel universe where Broadway musicals are the dominant art form...[this] book offers diehard fans new facets to admire about favorites, and newer fans may be inspired to learn more about the myriad shows and personalities mentioned within the book's pages." --Talkin Broadway
About the Author
Eddie Shapiro is a freelance writer and theater journalist whose work has appeared in Out Magazine, Instinct, and Backstage West. He is the author of Queens in the Kingdom: The Ultimate Gay and Lesbian Guide to the Disney Theme Parks.
- Hardcover: 384 pages
- Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (February 28, 2014)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0199941203
- ISBN-13: 978-0199941209
- Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 7.1 x 1.4 inches
- Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Nothing Like a Dame is such an interesting read that one may find it hard to put down and I am sure many will probably read it over the course of a couple of days. The book is that good and interesting. I, however, decided to engross myself in reading about just one of the dames each day. I decided on this approach so that I could read each chapter more slowly and intently, fully grasping each dames unique story and providing time to reflect on their career and what was it that allowed some of them to become part of the all-time greats in musical theater and others well on their way to achieving that status. While I love the pictures, facts and details about musical theater (and boy did I learn a lot from this book - I guess I did not know as much as I thought) what I think makes this book so good a read for everyone is the struggles that each of these woman went through and the sacrifices that they made to make it to the top of their chosen field/profession. Sure they all have raw talent but every one of them had obstacles along the way where they could have easily given up or chosen a different career path. I was surprised that few of these ladies came from wealthier families where the ability to pursue a career in musical theater might have been easier, that all had periods where work was harder to come by, all had performed in shows that closed quickly, all had producers, directors and fellow actors where the connection was not always harmonious, all had personal situations and trauma to handle etc. Not one of the women had it easy or was handed a big break or fame/stardom on a silver platter. It was this struggle to overcome all the obstacles thrown their way and their dedication, desire and strength to succeed and be the best that they could be that truly made this book a real gem for me.
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