Summary of The Function of Song in Contemporary British Drama

The Function of Song in Contemporary British Drama examines the use of song in drama to examine the rise of the musical theater in Britain. The book looks at how song in the musical theater reveals themes and narrative arcs that are important to the contemporary British experience. The book focuses on the contributions of three of Britain’s most influential musical theater writers: Stephen Sondheim, John Kander and Andrew Lloyd Webber. The book also looks at how these writers use music to reflect life in contemporary England and how their music has influenced contemporary writing throughout Britain. Through the discussion on these writers, the book then goes on to examine the use of song in other British plays and what purpose it serves on both a local and global scale in the world of theater.