From the Bowery to Broadway: Lew Fields and the Roots of American Popular Theatre - by Armond Fields, L. Marc Fields
Before Ziegfeld launched his Follies, before the Shubert brothers built their empire, Lew Fields' productions were the toast of Broadway. For the "smart set" in the luxury box seats and the shopkeepers and clerks in the gallery, an evening at Weber & Fields' Music Hall was the hottest ticket in town, a chance to see the biggest stars of the era - Lillian Russell, Fay Templeton, David Warfield, DeWolf Hopper, and the "Dutch" knockabout comedy team of Weber & Fields. From the Bowery to Broadway offers a panoramic view of the early history of the American popular theater through the career of a consummate showman. In the half-century between his stage debut - a bumbling youngster in a Bowery amateur show - and his farewell appearance on the opening night bill at Radio City Music Hall, Lew Fields was involved in almost every form of popular entertainment, from the dime museum, circus, the minstrel show and vaudeville, to revues, "book musicals," and operettas, as well as recordings, silent films, radio, and talkies. Here are the triumphs and disasters of a singular life in show biz. Born Moses Schoenfeld, Lew Fields crossed the Atlantic in steerage at age five and grew up in the mean streets of the Bowery in the 1870s and 1880s. At the age of ten, to escape his father's sweatshop, he began performing on stage with his school chum Joe Weber. As teenagers, they trouped through variety circuits all over the country; before they reached thirty, they had their own Broadway theater and all-star stock company. Going solo, Fields blossomed into an innovative producer who helped raise the Broadway musical to the pinnacle of show biz (his scores of credits include five of the early Rodgers and Hart shows). Fields' influence was extraordinary: his raucous "Mike and Meyer" knockabout comedy routines with Weber were the prototypes for generations of acts to follow, and the legacy of the satirical revues performed nightly at the Music Hall lives on in the irreverent topical humour.
Join Jacqueline Goldfinger and Adam Szymkowicz at Drama Book Shop for a discussion on playwriting, featuring a talkback, book signing, and live podcast recording. Celebrate three books on playwriting.
KAREN MASON will release her singular album Karen Mason And All That Jazz! on CD and in digital and streaming formats. For this personal new collection, Karen explores the beloved songbook of John Kander and Fred Ebb.
The HELL’S KITCHEN’s Original Broadway Cast Album has hit #1 on the Billboard Cast Albums chart. HELL’S KITCHEN is a new musical from 16-time Grammy Award winner Alicia Keys, whose songs and experiences growing up in NY inspire a story made for Broadway. Learn more about the show and the album.
Brainstorm Live Entertainment has released the first music video from their new musical, The Fitzgeralds of St. Paul. The two-actor chamber musical dramatizes the tumultuous marriage of Jazz Age literary legends F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald. Watch now!
The stories of American film, television, Broadway, and regional theater are entwined with the story of Yale Repertory Theatre in The Play's the Thing out now.
Loyalty is tested and alliances shift in Archmage Tribal Wars, the fourth installment of the Archmage Series by Christopher Leigh Dodson and Christina Alayna Dodson. Now available for fantasy enthusiasts.
Composer Kate Soper will release the world premiere recording of her opera, THE ROMANCE OF THE ROSE, featuring the Wet Ink Ensemble. This two-act opera delves into the complexities of love and desire.
EMPIRE: The Musical Original Off-Broadway Cast album will be released this winter. The story is told through the lens of three generations of dreamers and doers spanning New York City in the Roaring Twenties, the Great Depression, and the Bicentennial Year of 1976. Learn more about the show and about the album.
Amnon Kabatchnik's latest book, Murder in the West End: The Plays of Agatha Christie and Her Disciples, Volume II, explores the works of Agatha Christie and her followers.
We're falling into fall with a great Broadway read! This season, Broadway's best have put pen to paper to turn out theatre page-turners of every kind. From theatre biographies to theatre fiction; theatre books for kids to theatre history; check out our collection of 32 new Broadway books for every theatre lover's Fall 2024 reading list.
The original cast recording of OZ: A NEW MUSICAL will be released. OZ: A New Musical explores the genius of L. Frank Baum and his complicated relationship with his most famous creation, the Land of Oz. Learn more bout the musical!
Austrian guitarist Wolfgang Muthspiel's new solo program, ETUDES/QUIETUDES, celebrates the acoustic guitar with 11 concert etudes and pieces honoring Bill Evans, Johann Sebastian Bach, and Paul Motian.
Drama Notebook has introduced a cost-effective way for drama teachers to access royalty-free scripts and lesson plans, offering a valuable resource for educators working with plays for kids, teens, and schools.
CelloVoci – the newly formed classical-crossover group starring internationally renowned cello and vocal duo BRANDEN & JAMES, along with powerhouse singer/songwriter EFFIE PASSERO from “American Idol” and Postmodern Jukebox – will release their debut album Happy Day. Learn ore.
BIRDLAND JAZZ CLUB will present the return of MAC and Bistro Award-winning concert artist Jeff Harnar – celebrating his new album Jeff Harnar Sings Sammy Cahn: The Second Time Around. Learn how to purchase tickets.
Join Maleah Joi Moon and Brandon Victor Dixon from the Broadway cast of HELL'S KITCHEN for a signing at Barnes & Noble 5th Ave this Friday at noon to support the Hell’s Kitchen Original Broadway Cast Recording.
Michael Ball and Alfie Boe have just announced that they will release their sixth joint studio album ‘Together At Home’. A selection of homegrown songs you know and love, including hits such as ‘Proud’, ‘Rule The World’ and ‘Welcome Home’.
Dennis Mukeera and Bridget Namubiru have announced the release of their new urban fantasy novel, Borrowed Destiny: The Weight and Burden of Soul Sacrifice. This gripping novel promises to transport readers into a world of dark schemes, psychological horrors, and forbidden romance.
The Broadway Education Alliance has announced the launch of the Broadway StageNotes podcast. Hosted by Lauren Van Hemert, an award-winning journalist, the podcast promises to shine a spotlight on the importance of arts education and enrichment programs.
Jamil Hijazi's memoir Never Settled explores his life's journey from Tucson to global travels, delving into spirituality, psychology, and quantum physics, while reflecting on mental health and societal trends.
In anticipation of the Playwrights Horizons production of Gabriel Kahane’s Magnificent Bird/Book of Travelers, Nonesuch Records released a new recording of “Red Letter Days”. Learn more about the recording!
Gunhild Carling is releasing a major big band album this fall! Titled 'Jazz Is My Lifestyle'. The album was recorded in Frank Sinatra's former studio, East West in Los Angeles, featuring top big band musicians in America.
A charming inn in Golden Glen becomes the scene of a chilling murder in Camille Sharp's latest cozy mystery, Murder Checks Inn. Follow Maiden Harlow as she turns amateur sleuth to uncover the truth.