Rise Up!: Broadway and American Society from 'Angels in America' to 'Hamilton'

Description

Penned by one of America's best-known daily theatre critics and organized chronologically, this lively and readable book tells the story of Broadway's renaissance from the darkest days of the AIDS crisis, via the disaster that was Spiderman: Turn off the Dark through the unparalleled financial, artistic and political success of Lin-Manuel Miranda's Hamilton. It is the story of the embrace of risk and substance. In so doing, Chris Jones makes the point that the theatre thrived by finally figuring out how to embrace the bold statement and insert itself into the national conversation - only to find out in 2016 that a hefty sector of the American public had not been listening to what it had to say. Chris Jones was in the theatres when and where it mattered. He takes readers from the moment when Tony Kushner's angel crashed (quite literally) through the ceiling of prejudice and religious intolerance to the triumph of Hamilton, with the coda of the Broadway cast addressing a new Republican vice-president from the stage. That complex performance - at once indicative of the theatre's new clout and its inability to fully change American society for the better - is the final scene of the book.

Chris Jones is the longtime chief theater critic and Sunday culture columnist of the Chicago Tribune, where he has been on staff since 2002. Throughout the 1990s, he covered Broadway and its tours for Variety. He is author of Bigger, Brighter, Louder: 150 Years of Chicago Theater (2013) and his work has appeared often in the New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and many other publications. Jones read Drama at the University of Hull, UK, and has a PhD from The Ohio State University. In 2011, Jones was named by American Theater magazine as one of the most influential theater critics in America. In 2014, he became the director of the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center's National Critics Institute in Waterford, Connecticut. Jones is a winner of the George Jean Nathan Award for Dramatic Criticism, the most prestigious honour for drama critics in the United States.

From Angels in America to Hamilton, so many Broadway shows have made important statements to their audiences, causing them to examine the reality of their lives. Chris Jones has written a wonderful history of that era that is extremely well-researched. His writing is lively and crisp, and his stories are well-told and entertaining. Anyone who loves theatre or cultural history or social commentary will love this book. This book deserves broad readership beyond those groups by anyone interested in our society today. * Manhattan Book Review * There is much to be praised, and so often the details are beautifully stated in the author's clean, accessible voice ... Jones' prowess as a critic is on great display here; shows you've never seen come startlingly alive on the page, their essence boiled down, their heart and soul expertly explained. What shines through most is Jones as a giddy chronicler of ideas and a lover of the theater, eager to draw the line from his own knowledge of the art form to what is happening offstage. * Third Coast Review * In his new book, "Rise Up! Broadway and American Society from 'Angels in America' to 'Hamilton,'" Chris Jones ... has chronicled the era in a singularly creative way, bringing to bear his prodigious gift for tapping into the nexus of artistic innovation, the business of show business, new forms of audience engagement, and (as the book's title so clearly proclaims), the political fevers that can emerge during a given period of history ... Whether you booed or applauded for all or some of the many plays and musicals discussed in "Rise Up!" there is no denying that Jones has vividly caught the unsettled spirit of the times in which they came to the stage. And given the wildly melodramatic nature of our current moment on this planet he leaves you wondering just where the theater might be headed over the course of the next 25 years. * Hedy Weiss, WTTW * Chris Jones [writes] cogently and intelligently in a fashion that is easy to read and understand. In fact, this is a real page turner. * British Theatre Guide * A vivid compelling read that will form an important part of any Broadway-lover's bookshelf * Matt Wolf, theatre critic * Some critics get it right, some critics get it wrong, but Chris Jones is one of the only critics who consistently reviews all shows trying to be helpful to its creators so they can put right what is wrong. Chris brings his formidable analytical skills to examining the theatrical tissue and political discourse that has led to the spectacular rebirth of the American play and musical on Broadway. A hugely informative resume of the rise up over the last 25 years of the American theatre from "Angels in America" to "Hamilton". It puts you into the room as it happened. * Cameron Mackintosh, theatrical producer *