Comparative drama: portrayals of the national and the popular in musical dramas in the United States and Brazil (1910 - 1940)

• Grant number: 24/07215-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: November 01, 2024
• End date: October 31, 2028
• Field of knowledge: Linguistics, Literature and Arts - Literature - Comparative Literature
• Principal Investigator: Maria Sílvia Betti
• Grantee: João Victor Pereira da Silva
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Filosofia, Letras e Ciências Humanas (FFLCH). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

This research project aims to analyze and compare the portrayals of the national and the popular in musical dramas from the United States and Brazil between the years 1910 and 1940. Through the inspection of archives, libraries, and collections in search of theatrical texts, as well as potential sheet music, phonographic recordings, and journalistic records from the specified period, the study seeks to investigate how the concepts of "nation" and "people" were constructed in two different genres of popular theater in these countries: American vaudeville and Brazilian revue theater, while also examining the interactions between these two frameworks. To achieve this, representations of social, political, and economic matters of the United States will be analyzed in a selection of musical pieces from genres of that period such as vaudeville, minstrel shows, revues, and musicals, aiming to understand the role of music styles associated with the South of the country, such as blues, jazz, and ragtime, in the popularization of this theater form. Furthermore, socio-historical representations of the Brazilian "people" in revues in Rio de Janeiro during this period will also be examined, with special attention given to the use of Brazilian rhythms such as maxixe, lundu, and samba in the construction of a so-called popular theater. Lastly, the study will investigate how the massive influx of American cultural expressions in the city of Rio de Janeiro from the 1920s onwards, particularly through Hollywood cinema and the popularization of American musical rhythms via radio, had a profound impact on the scenic modernization process already documented in Brazilian theater history. Through the examination of materials from a period still underexplored in Brazilian dramaturgy, the aim is to corroborate the hypothesis that the incorporation of a light American genres, already popular in its country of origin, into Brazilian theater scene of the early 20th century represented not only a profound change in the Brazilian revue but also an important step in the trajectory leading to the emergence of a modern Brazilian theater.