George Gershwin
George Gershwin
George Gershwin was born in Brooklyn on September 26, 1898, and began his musical training when he was 13. At 16, he quit high school to work as a "song plugger" for a music publisher, and soon he was writing songs himself. "Swanee," as introduced by Al Jolson, brought George his first real fame and led to his writing a succession of 22 musical comedies, most with his older brother, Ira. The Gershwins' shows include Lady, Be Good!; Oh, Kay!; Strike Up The Band; Girl Crazy; and the Pulitzer Prize-winning Of Thee I Sing. From his early career George had ambitions to compose serious music. These ambitions were realized in some of his masterpieces, among them "Rhapsody In Blue," "Concerto In F," "An American In Paris" and "Second Rhapsody." In the late '20s George became fascinated by the DuBose Heyward novel Porgy, recognizing it as a perfect vehicle for opera using jazz and blues idioms. George's folk opera Porgy and Bess opened in Boston on September 30, 1935, and had its Broadway premiere two weeks later. In 1937 George was at the height of his career. In Hollywood, working on the score of The Goldwyn Follies, he collapsed and on July 11 died of a brain tumor. He was not quite 39 years old.
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Porgy and Bess® (2012 Broadway Version)
Multiple Authors
Full-Length Musical, DramaPorgy and Bess® (2012 Broadway Version)
George Gershwin ,DuBose Heyward ,Dorothy Heyward , Ira Gershwin
Full-Length Musical, Drama / 4w, 4m
George Gershwin’s final work for the musical stage is universally acknowledged as a masterpiece and the first American Folk Opera. This Tony Award-winning adaptation of the opera premiered on Broadway at the Richard Rodgers Theatre on 12 January 2012, starring Audra McDonald and Norm Lewis.
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An American in Paris
Multiple Authors
Full-Length Musical, Dramatic ComedyAn American in Paris
Ira Gershwin , George Gershwin , Craig Lucas
Full-Length Musical, Dramatic Comedy / 4w, 5m plus ensemble
The romantic story of a young American soldier, a beautiful French girl, and an indomitable European city... all set to the immortal score from George and Ira Gershwin.
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Porgy and Bess®
Multiple Authors
Full-Length Musical, DramaPorgy and Bess®
George Gershwin ,DuBose Heyward ,Dorothy Heyward , Ira Gershwin
Full-Length Musical, Drama / 4w, 4m
George Gershwin's final work for the musical stage is universally acknowledged as a masterpiece and the first American Folk Opera.
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Nice Work If You Can Get It
Multiple Authors
Full-Length Musical, ComedyNice Work If You Can Get It
George Gershwin , Ira Gershwin , Joe DiPietro , Guy Bolton , P.G. Wodehouse
Full-Length Musical, Comedy / 5w, 5m
This screwball comedy is a surefire crowd-pleaser, with classic Gershwin tunes, romance, exuberant production numbers, and a hilarious script poking fun at class snobbery in the Prohibition era.
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An American in Paris
Multiple Authors
Full-Length Musical, Dramatic ComedyAn American in Paris
Ira Gershwin , George Gershwin , Craig Lucas
Full-Length Musical, Dramatic Comedy / 4w, 5m plus ensemble
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Nice Work If You Can Get It
Multiple Authors
Full-Length Musical, ComedyNice Work If You Can Get It
George Gershwin , Ira Gershwin , Joe DiPietro , Guy Bolton , P.G. Wodehouse
Full-Length Musical, Comedy / 5w, 5m
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