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The Whole Other World of Ashman and Menken: Broadway Conventions in Disney's "Renaissance" Musicals

Minelli, Kelli Marie
http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1402-0945
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=case1670604856603896

Abstract Details

2023, Doctor of Philosophy, Case Western Reserve University, Musicology.
From 1989-1999, Walt Disney Animation Studios experienced a period of industrial growth and a return to the artistic ideology of their "Golden Age," resulting in the "Disney Renaissance." The films that comprise this Renaissance represent not only a diverse body of musical works that dominated the cultural landscape of their time, but would soon influence the trajectory of the Broadway musical and popular culture in decades to follow. The theatrically informed compositional ethos of songwriting team Howard Ashman and Alan Menken brought new life to the Disney animated musical, and through their work, would bring about the era of the Disney musical on stage. With the beginning of Disney’s Broadway productions in the 1990s and the company’s subsequent expansion throughout Times Square through the renovation of and residence in the New Amsterdam Theatre, the impact of Disney’s animated musicals ripples throughout popular culture today, bolstered by the company’s adaptation strategies and nostalgia-based marketing. In this dissertation, I argue that Howard Ashman and Alan Menken’s scores to The Little Mermaid (1989), Beauty and the Beast (1991), and Aladdin (1992) established a new model for the Disney animated musical, defined by musical theatre conventions, and created a distinct sonic identity upon which the company still relies. Chapter One focuses on The Little Mermaid, arguing that Ariel’s (speaking and singing) voice represents not only her agency within the arc of the story, but would come to symbolize the new artistic aims of the Disney Renaissance. Chapter Two examines Aladdin’s transformation beginning with its Broadway-informed conception, through its filmic realization, and eventually to its Broadway manifestation, centering sexuality, musical orientalism, theatrical influence, and US anxieties about the Middle East in the 1990s. The final chapter centers on Beauty and the Beast and Disney’s move into Times Square, analyzing the film’s theatrical aspirations and the ensuing Broadway production, clearing the way for Disney’s transition to the Great White Way.
Daniel Goldmark (Advisor)
Robert Spadoni (Committee Member)
Georgia Cowart (Committee Member)
Susan McClary (Committee Member)
139 p.
Film Studies; Motion Pictures; Music; Theater History
Disney Renaissance; Broadway; musical theatre; animation; film; Beauty and the Beast; Aladdin; The Little Mermaid; musicals; Howard Ashman; Alan Menken; Walt Disney Animation Studios; voice; theatre; Times Square; Disney

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Minelli, K. M. (2023). The Whole Other World of Ashman and Menken: Broadway Conventions in Disney's "Renaissance" Musicals [Doctoral dissertation, Case Western Reserve University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=case1670604856603896

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Minelli, Kelli. The Whole Other World of Ashman and Menken: Broadway Conventions in Disney's "Renaissance" Musicals . 2023. Case Western Reserve University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=case1670604856603896.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Minelli, Kelli. "The Whole Other World of Ashman and Menken: Broadway Conventions in Disney's "Renaissance" Musicals ." Doctoral dissertation, Case Western Reserve University, 2023. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=case1670604856603896

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

case1670604856603896
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This open access ETD is published by Case Western Reserve University School of Graduate Studies and OhioLINK.