Texts as They Age: Rent and Falsettos as Period Pieces with Deborah Blumenthal Ep. 131

About this episode

The episode explores how musicals like Rent and Falsettos have transformed from contemporary stories into historical texts through the lens of tragedy and the AIDS crisis.

"We watch a Holocaust play and we know that all of these people are gonna die. We watch an AIDS play and we know how badly it's gonna turn out." So what does it mean for a musical to be a period piece marked by tragedy? In this Season 9 premiere of Scene to Song, host Shoshana Greenberg sits down with dramaturg Deborah Blumenthal to explore how musicals like Rent and Falsettos have transformed from contemporary stories into historical texts. They examine these iconic Broadway shows through the lens of the AIDS crisis, discussing how audiences experience them differently now than when they first premiered. The conversation also features an analysis of "New York" from the 2024 West End musical Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York). In this episode, you'll hear about: How Rent and Falsettos function as AIDS-era period pieces The evolving audience relationship with tragic historical musicals Deborah's dramaturgical approach to reviving classic shows Her upcoming production of Heartbreak Hotel What makes a musical become a "period piece" You can write to scenetosong@gmail.com with a comment or question about an episode or about musical theater, or if you’d like to be a podcast…

People in this episode

Host: Shoshana Greenberg

Guest: Deborah Blumenthal

Topics covered

• musicals as period pieces
• AIDS crisis
• audience experience
• dramaturgy
• historical texts
• tragedy in theater

Keywords

• musicals
• period pieces
• AIDS
• tragedy
• dramaturgical approach
• audience relationship
• Broadway

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Rent, Falsettos, Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York), Heartbreak Hotel

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