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Broadway Bodies: A Critical History of Conformity
Broadway has body issues.
What is a Broadway Body? Broadway has long preserved the ideology of the "Broadway Body": the hyper-fit, exceptionally able, triple-threat performer who represents how Broadway musicals favor certain kinds of bodies. Casting is always a political act, situated within a power structure that gives preference to the Broadway Body.
In Broadway Bodies, author Ryan Donovan explores how ability, sexuality, and size intersect with gender, race, and ethnicity in casting and performance. To understand these intersectional relationships, he poses a series of Why did A Chorus Line, a show that sought to individuate dancers, inevitably make dancers indistinguishable? How does the use of fat suits in musicals like Dreamgirls and Hairspray stigmatize fatness? What were the political implications of casting two straight actors as the gay couple in La Cage aux Folles in 1983? How did deaf actors change the sound of musicals in Deaf West's Broadway revivals? Whose bodies does Broadway cast and whose does it cast aside?
In answering these questions, Broadway Bodies tells a history of Broadway's inclusion of various forms of embodied difference while revealing its simultaneous ambivalence toward non-conforming bodies.
What is a Broadway Body? Broadway has long preserved the ideology of the "Broadway Body": the hyper-fit, exceptionally able, triple-threat performer who represents how Broadway musicals favor certain kinds of bodies. Casting is always a political act, situated within a power structure that gives preference to the Broadway Body.
In Broadway Bodies, author Ryan Donovan explores how ability, sexuality, and size intersect with gender, race, and ethnicity in casting and performance. To understand these intersectional relationships, he poses a series of Why did A Chorus Line, a show that sought to individuate dancers, inevitably make dancers indistinguishable? How does the use of fat suits in musicals like Dreamgirls and Hairspray stigmatize fatness? What were the political implications of casting two straight actors as the gay couple in La Cage aux Folles in 1983? How did deaf actors change the sound of musicals in Deaf West's Broadway revivals? Whose bodies does Broadway cast and whose does it cast aside?
In answering these questions, Broadway Bodies tells a history of Broadway's inclusion of various forms of embodied difference while revealing its simultaneous ambivalence toward non-conforming bodies.
- GenresNonfiction
337 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 3, 2023
5 people are currently reading
284 people want to read
About the author
Ryan Donovan
25 books5 followersRyan P. Donovan writes book reviews for School Library Journal. He has previously contributed to Kirkus Reviews and Booklist. He wrote the opening chapter for Out Behind the Desk: Workplace Issues for LGBTQ Librarians. He has also presented at the New York Comic Con and Book Expo America on the subject of graphic novels in libraries. Ryan has also contributed four entries to the upcoming 2-volume Graphic Novels encyclopedia to be published by Salem Press. He works as a librarian in New York City.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
March 14, 2024
WOW was this good. Incredibly well-researched, well-written, & well-thought out. I’d love for this book to be in more curriculum for theatre students because I think it does an amazing job of integrating intersectional perspectives with accessible references to MT lore. 100/10 would recommend, it seemed daunting when I first started because it is a little academic but it was easy digestible! I have a lot to think about after reading it
May 12, 2023
If you are invested in the intersections of American theater and social justice, put this book on your list.
Ryan Donovan expertly breaks down the politics that allow for certain bodies to be represented on stage, lambasts the concept of “The Broadway Body” and dives into the productions that have allowed for nonconformity to take center stage–which happens far less frequently then you’d think.
Divided into sections discussing queerness, fatness, and dis/ability, this book treats its subjects with care and grace. It’s easy to forget how young this art form (musical theater) is, and how far we’ve come, and still far yet to go. I cannot recommend this book enough.
Ryan Donovan expertly breaks down the politics that allow for certain bodies to be represented on stage, lambasts the concept of “The Broadway Body” and dives into the productions that have allowed for nonconformity to take center stage–which happens far less frequently then you’d think.
Divided into sections discussing queerness, fatness, and dis/ability, this book treats its subjects with care and grace. It’s easy to forget how young this art form (musical theater) is, and how far we’ve come, and still far yet to go. I cannot recommend this book enough.
January 26, 2025
“Broadway cares, but it’s not a charity.”
Super thorough & incredibly accessible! Donovan’s passion about the topic is palpable, and he does a phenomenal job of taking an intersectional perspective on everything he addresses. Now if you don’t mind me I’m gonna go find some slime tutorials
Super thorough & incredibly accessible! Donovan’s passion about the topic is palpable, and he does a phenomenal job of taking an intersectional perspective on everything he addresses. Now if you don’t mind me I’m gonna go find some slime tutorials
August 2, 2023
A much-needed work on how, although Broadway often espouses inclusivity in the material it produces, it has a much rockier road to inclusivity in its casting practices.
October 10, 2023
So so good. Really.
October 22, 2023
Loved this so much!!!
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January 31, 2026Incredibly detailed, engaging, and thoughtful look at the history of Broadway’s fatphobia, homophobia, and ableism, among other intersecting oppressions. Love the way Ryan Donovan honed in on specific musicals to illustrate his point and break down what really is and more often isn’t good representation. Language is clear, nuanced, and logical. Stunning production photos compounded with apt lyric references- what’s not to love! Well worth the read for a seasoned industry professional or even just a lover of theater, everyone will be able to learn something from this book
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews