BroadwayWorld End-of-Season Book Report

Well, the 2007-2008 theatre season has now officially ended, and it's time to clean off my desk, to get some free time to go to the beach. I don't think that we've ever given out so many four and five star reviews and there's a lot of exciting reading and buying of books, as well as gift-giving ahead. 

THE SOUTH PACIFIC COMPANION
by Laurence Maslon
Foreward by Adam Guettel
Simon & Schuster
Fireside
5 stars (out of 5)
 
This hardcover oversized coffee table book is simply spectacular!  192 pages of glorious photos, documents, lyrics, history, great stories, rarities never before seen, etc.  A sure thing and a must-have.  The timing couldn't be better, of course, with the current Broadway revival, at Lincoln Center, being one of the hottest tickets in town. The author, Laurence Maslon, is an Associate Arts Professor at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts and also gave us, at the end of last year ..

THE SOUND OF MUSIC COMPANION
Foreward by (Lord) Andrew Lloyd Webber
Simon & Schuster
Fireside
5 stars (out of 5)
 
This edition, too, is pretty damned glorious!  Also ... good timing to pick up, along with Julie Andrews' memoir.  Both the SOUTH PACIFIC and THE SOUND OF MUSIC coffee table "stunners" are incredibly full of amazing information.  It's like all the research has been done for you and organized brilliantly, making them perfect for your personal library (or coffee table) as well as public libraries, school and college libraries, and professional institutions.  The low available pricing on these books at places like AMAZON.COM make then absurdly affordable as well. You'd be hard-pressed to find better (or more entertaining) value for your dollar.
 
It is also important to know that both these editions were fully authorized by the Rodgers and Hammerstein Organization.