The Dramatists Guild Responds To Charles Isherwood's Claim That Sung-Through Musicals Have No Book

"I do find it slightly puzzling that [HAMILTON] was nominated in the book of a musical category, since the show is almost sung-through, but it's the kind of juggernaut that we haven't seen in years."

When New York Times theatre critic Charles Isherwood expressed the above sentiment in an article titled "'Hamilton' Aside, Where the Real Tony Competition Lies," it set off a storm of protests throughout the Internet from both writers of musicals and those who enjoy them.

Before the 1980s, when sung-though musicals become more abundant on Broadway, many believed the book of a musical was limited to just the spoken dialogue. But Tony wins for the books of shows like CATS, EVITA and LES MISERABLES made the public more aware that the book was also the construction of a musical; its plot development, its characters and everything else that made a musical a play.

"Some critics and fans share the misperception that book writers merely craft the dialogue between the show's songs. They even presume that a musical with minimal spoken text barely has any book at all," Dramatists Guild of America's President Doug Wright writes in a Letter To The Editor in today's New York Times. "This is not the case."

He continues: "The Dramatists Guild would like to offer a few lessons in this misunderstood art from some of Broadway's leading musical theater practitioners."

Click here for the full letter.

The Dramatists Guild of America was established over eighty years ago, and is the only professional association which advances the interests of playwrights, composers, lyricists and librettists writing for the living stage. The Guild has over 6,000 members nationwide, from beginning writers to the most prominent authors represented on Broadway, Off-Broadway and in regional theaters.

Photo of Doug Wright by Jennifer Broski